Banned Books Week
Banned Books Week is an annual event that usually takes place the last week of September. The week is dedicated to celebrating the freedom to read and the value of open access to information. By focusing on books that have been challenged or banned, the event seeks to draw attention to the harms of censorship. What is provided below highlights some of the books from 2015 to 2016 that have either been challenged or banned. The description provided next to the book discusses where and why the book was either challenged or banned.
City of Thieves, by David Benioff
Challenged at the Republic Schools in Nashville, Tenn. (2015) despite the charter school operator redacting and changing portions of the book that were deemed “inappropriate” for middle school students. The 2008 work of historical fiction chronicles the perils and lives of two boys in World War II-era Leningrad and includes profanity and sexually explicit scenes.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon
Pulled as a summer reading assignment in the Leon County, Fla. schools (2015) because of the book’s content and language. Moved from required reading to optional reading at Lincoln High School in Tallahassee, Fla. (2015) after receiving about a dozen complaints through telephone calls and e-mails about the book’s profanity and atheism. The award-winning book is about a 15-year old autistic child who investigates the death of a neighbor’s dog.
Daughter of the Forest, by Juliet Marillier
Challenged, but retained in the Warrensburg, Mo. High School library (2015) despite a rape scene in the book. The book is an historical fantasy novel first published in 1999 and is loosely based on the legend of the Children of Lir and “The Six Swans” (a story that has many versions, including one by the Brothers Grimm). It was a finalist for the 2000 Aurealis Awards for Fantasy Novel and won the 2001 American Library Association Alex Award.
Beloved, by Toni Morrison
Challenged, but retained as an optional summer reading choice in the Satellite Beach, Fla. High School Advanced Placement classes (2015). A parent admitted not having read the entire book when he addressed the committee in September, but wanted the book banned because of what he called “porn content.” Challenged on the Fairfax County, Va. senior English reading list (2016) by a parent claiming “the book includes scenes of violent sex, including a gang rape, and was too graphic and extreme for teenagers.” The controversy led to legislation (House Bill 516) that calls for the Virginia Department of Education to create a policy that notifies parents of the content and then allows them to review the materials. The novel is inspired by the story of an African-American slave, Margaret Garner, who escaped slavery in Kentucky in late January 1856 by fleeing to Ohio, a free state.
Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi
Challenged, but retained at Crafton Hills College, a community college in Yucaipa, Calif. (2015) despite a student’s request to remove the book because it was “objectionable.” The book was a New York Times Notable Book, a Time magazine “Best Comix of the Year,” a San Francisco Chronicle and Los Angeles Times bestseller, the winner of the 2004 Alex Award, and named on the 2004 Best Books for Young Adults list.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot
Challenged as a summer reading assignment in the Knoxville, Tenn. high school system (2015) because a parent claimed the nonfiction book “has too much graphic information.” Henrietta Lacks was a poor black tobacco farmer whose cells—taken without her knowledge in 1951—became one of the most important tools in medicine, vital for developing the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping, in vitro fertilization, and more.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
Removed from the Montgomery County, Penn. school curriculum (2015) after a group of students said the book’s use of the N-word made them uncomfortable and the students thought the school was not being inclusive. Since its publication in 1884, the book has caused controversy starting in 1885 when it was banned in Concord, Mass. as “trash and suitable only for the slums.”
The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls
Suspended at the Ambridge, Pa. High School (2015) because the book is “racist and sexually explicit.” The challenged memoir is about growing up in poverty with a father who spent his money on alcohol and a mother who became homeless. Published in 2005, the memoir spent a total of 261 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and is now under development as a film by Paramount.
The above descriptions are taken from Robert P. Doyle, "2015-2016 Books Challenged or Banned." Retrieved from https://www.ila.org/content/documents/2016banned.pdf
Find this article at http://thelibrary.org/blogs/article.cfm?aid=5004&lid=0