[Reposting from 2014]
I said that, to a television reporter in Omaha during Banned Books Week a while back. The next day the ticket agent at the airport told me he’d seen it on television the night before and upgraded me to first class.
Which is not necessarily why you should support —
Banned Books Week!
Support the US Constitution!
Read a banned book today!
Find a worthy title on the ALA’s Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books. Here, let me start you off with a few:
1. Harry Potter (series), by J.K. Rowling (Seriously? Still? Unbelievable.)
6. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou (On my to-read shelf. Come and take it from me, copper!)
13. Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey (Oh, please.)
14. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain (Would that be because the word “Nigger” is in it? Like that word was never used in Mark Twain’s time, or today, either.)
16. Forever, by Judy Blume (Why is Judy Blume always on these lists? Perhaps because she teaches kids necessary things about life their parents can’t or just plain won’t?)
17. The Color Purple, by Alice Walker (One of the best books about women ever written.)
21. To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee (Here, I pause to throw down the gauntlet to absolutely anyone who would DARE to ban that book from my shelves. My sword and shield are ready!)
26. Beloved, by Toni Morrison (A book that frightened the life out of me, I grant you, but I’m as white as you can get without bleach and only a book like this could make me understand, even a little bit, what slavery meant. And means.)
70. Harris and Me, by Gary Paulsen (Well, we certainly don’t want our kids laughing out loud, now, do we?)
88. The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood
89. Friday Night Lights, by H.G. Bissenger (I add these two books just for their juxtaposition on the list.)
Buy a Banned Book today! Check out a Banned Book from your library! Download one on your iPad! Loan one to a friend! Give one as a gift! Bring a Banned Book to your next school board meeting and sit in the front row and READ IT! Up against the establishment! Stick it to the man!
