Showcasing Your Banned Book Reviews (plus some controversy)

Reviews of Banned and/or Challenged Books
... submitted by my readers ...

... and some controversy to discuss (at the very end) ...

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Thank you to everyone who submitted a review for this post! If I missed yours, or if you have more, feel free to post links in the comment section.

And now, on to your reviews ...

1. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret - reviewed by Maw Books,
2. A Separate Peace - reviewed by Care's Online Book Club,
3. Ask Alice - reviewed by Maw Books,
4. Beloved - reviewed by Things Mean A Lot,
5. Bridge to Terabithia - reviewed by Things Mean A Lot,
6. The Catcher in the Rye - reviewed by It's All About Books,
7. The Chocolate War - reviewed by Just a (Reading) Fool,
8. The Color Purple - reviewed by Things Mean A Lot,
9. Fahrenheit 451 - reviewed by Things Mean A Lot,
10. The Giver - reviewed by Maw Books, Things Mean A Lot, Books Worth Reading, Just a (Reading) Fool,
    
11. The Grapes of Wrath - reviewed by Devourer of Books,
    
12. The Handmaids Tale - reviewed by It's All About Books, Things Mean A Lot, Devourer of Books,
13. In Cold Blood - reviewed by Devourer of Books,
    
14. James and the Giant Peach - reviewed by Maw Books,
15. Just Listen - reviewed by Out of the Blue,
16. Kaffir Boy - reviewed by Devourer of Books,
    
17. Lolita - reviewed by Things Me A Lot,
18. Looking for Alaska - reviewed by Out of the Blue,
19. Lord of the Flies - reviewed by Devourer of Books,
    
20. The Lovely Bones - reviewed by Out of the Blue,
21. Of Mice and Men - reviewed by Maw Books,
22. Native Son - reviewed by Devourer of Books,
    
23. The Outsiders - reviewed by Just a (Reading) Fool,
24. Night In The Kitchen - reviewed by Books Worth Reading, Just A (Reading) Fool,
25. Slaughterhouse 5 - reviewed by Just a (Reading) Fool, Things Mean A Lot,
26. To Kill A Mockingbird - reviewed by Maw Books, Things Mean A Lot, Devourer of Books,
    
27. What My Mother Doesn't Know - reviewed by Out of the Blue,
28. A Wrinkle In Time - reviewed by Things Mean A Lot, Devourer of Books,
    

Of the above list, I read the following books in the pre-blog days:

• The Catcher In the Rye (hated it in high school)
• Are You There God? It's Me Margaret (honestly, I can't remember what I thought of it)
• Bridge to Terabithia (great story, hated the ending in middle school)
• A Wrinkle In Time (one of my childhood favorites)
• The Outsiders (loved, loved, loved this in high school)
• The Grapes of Wrath (the part with the old man still sticks in my head)
  
• Lord of the Flies (this book has stayed with me as well)
  
• Native Son (I remember disliking this one very much)
  

Regardless of what I thought of these books I'm grateful for the privilege of reading each one!

Currently on my TBR list are:

• The Handmaid's Tale
• The Giver
• Of Mice and Men
• To Kill A Mockingbird (this is hubby's favorite book)
• The Color Purple

Are any of the books in this post on your TBR list? Please share!

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And now for the controversy ...

I came across this post and it definitely got my attention. Regardless of whether or not I agree with the authors personal/religious/social/etc. views, I have to admit (and I think you will to) that she does raise a valid point: librarians by necessity have to choose which books of the millions available will appear in their libraries.

The reason so many of us support Banned Books Week is that we cherish our freedom to decide for ourselves (and our own children) what to read. I don't know the criteria for any library's selection process, but I certainly hope that it is a fair one.

I make it a point NOT to be political on this blog and I plan to continue that way. I know this could end up as a very controversial post merely based on the content of the post I linked to. My hope is that my readers will share their honest opinions (kindly!) - I really do want to hear what you have to say after reading and considering that post.

Lovely Links #4: Banned Books Week Edition

Welcome to the midpoint of banned books week! I'm receiving lots of banned/challenged book reviews but there is always room for more. Just post a comment to this post and I'll get you added. Remember, I need the reviews by Friday evening.

Here are some links I've come across recently that deal with the subject of banned books.

• Here is the official website for Banned Books Week.
• Google lets you preview portions of banned books here.
• Book Club Girl has several great links posted, including the MySpace and Facebook pages for BBW. Who knew there was such a thing?!
• The Debutante's Ball, a blog featuring new female authors, has been posting about banned books all week here, here, here, and here. I expect there will be more over the next few days so be sure to head back over there again.
• This post on Rebecca Reads was sparked by a not-so-nice commenter.
  
• And I briefly wrote about this last year on my book club's blog.

UPDATE: I just came across this link from Time Magazine. It highlights several banned/challenged books and gives reasons for the challenge to each one.

Do you have other links to share? Feel free to post them in the comments. (If you're reading this is a blog reader, you may want to click over to check out the comments - I'm sure there will be some great links in there!)

FYI, I'll be back to my book festival posts tomorrow.

I Want Your Banned Book Reviews!

To celebrate our freedom to read, I'm going to fill this post with links to YOUR reviews of banned and/or challenged books!

Simply post a comment that includes the link to your review and I'll add it to this post. At the end of the week I'll republish the revised post for everyone to enjoy.

Not sure if you've read a banned/challenged book? The the American Library Association has lots of lists at the bottom of this page.

Feel free to include as many links as you want. Come on, celebrate with me!



Reviews of Banned and/or Challenged Books
... I'm waiting for your review!

Banned Books Week ... some thoughts

It's here - Banned Books Week!
Sept. 27 - Oct. 4

I've got three posts planned for the topic of banned books this week:

• My thoughts - you know you want to know what I think
  
• A call for reviews of banned books - if you've got 'em, I want to see 'em!
• Links to other posts on banned books
  

I love to read. (Duh!) I have ever since I was a child. No one ever told me that I couldn't read a particular book. In part, that is what helped me develop my love of reading - I could explore whatever caught my interest.

Kiddo loves books, even though he can't read quite yet. As he grows, we're starting to read a wider variety of books and I see his personal taste beginning to develop - it's a wonderful thing to watch!

At this point I still regulate what he "reads", sort of by proxy. I order books from the library for him, I remind him of the books we have at home, etc. If he expresses interest in a topic, we find a book to read about it. As he learns to read though, I fully expect him to find books on his own, and it's here that the banning of books discussion comes into play.

There I things I don't want kiddo to read about. Some are simply inappropriate for his age, with themes or situations that he'll only understand when he's older. Others contain language I find offensive or just in poor taste. And there are some that I just don't like because of the messages they convey. As the parent of a young child (he's only 6, remember) I feel that it's my job to regulate the books he has access to, to choose books that will help him grow, learn, and develop a love of reading.

But at the same time, I will not deny any other person the opportunity to read a book just because I disapprove of it. In fact, down the road I may even encourage kiddo to read some of those books. Then we can discuss the questionable or controversial areas of the book with a discerning eye.

So those are my thoughts on this, the first day of Banned Books Week. If you've reviewed a banned book, I'll want to hear about it in my next post so stay tuned!