As we approach Banned Book Week, I thought I would focus my topic on that. As a librarian, we will be faced with many challenges, but banned books or challenged books could definitely be at the top of those challenges. We want to see students reading! As a librarian it doesn't matter what they are reading but there are also many people who feel they shouldn't be reading it because they feel that it is inappropriate.
“Books don’t turn kids into murderers, or rapists, or alcoholics,” Laurie Halse Anderson replied. “Books open hearts and minds, and help teenagers make sense of a dark and confusing world. YA literature saves lives. Every. Single. Day." Young adult books are challenged by parents throughout all middle and high schools across the county. If parents would talk to their child about the issues in the book rather than going to the school board to have the librarian remove the book from the school, it would save so many books but more importantly could save so many child/young adults. The parents may think that the book is inappropriate for their child after discussing it, but it may not be that way for other students in the school.
The American Library Association promotes the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one's opinions even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those viewpoints to all who wish to read them.
http://www.ala.org/bbooks/bannedbooksweek
It is important that we continue the fight, and allow students to read what they want to read!
Reference: 311 Reasons to Celebrate Banned Books Week | Banned Books Week. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/node/8256
I think that it is the season for thinking about book challenges. I like the quote from Laurie Halse Anderson. She would definitely know about how books affect the reader, and how book challenges work.
ReplyDeleteOne of my boys finally brought home a book he is interested in reading...
ReplyDeleteThe Silence of the Lambs.
Whatever!