One of my favorite things about Banned Books Week is that one group of people went out of their way to make certain "unseemly" books are unavailable for others to read, then as a result another group of people go out of their way to read them. Ah, America.
Right now I'm trying to finish up Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference by Warren St. John. It has all the disturbing background stories similar to those my refugee students went through and I never wanted to know. But it is a hopeful story so on I read! (It has not been banned.)
When I finish I'll read a Banned Book from my bookshelves. Here are the ones I haven't read or am considering rereading in case you'd like to join in and don't know what's been banned:
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (banned in the USA for moral reasons)
For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway (banned in Turkey and the USA for moral reasons)
Women in Love by D.H. Lawrence (banned in the USA for moral reasons)
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee - reread (banned in the USA for moral reasons)
The Call of the Wild by Jack London - reread (banned in Germany, Italy, and Yugoslavia for moral reasons)
Beloved by Toni Morrison (banned in the USA for moral reasons)
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (banned in Argentina, France, New Zealand, South Africa, UK, and USA for moral reasons)
Any recommendations? How are you planning to celebrate Banned Books Week?
P.S. Smart Mudflap Girl is from Cafe Press.
No comments:
Post a Comment