Banned!
29 Sep
Well it’s Banned Books Week– which I always love. The United States* has a long and illustrious history of hypocrisy (don’t take that as hate, with freedom of speech comes freedom to be a f@$king hypocrite– and freedom to entertain me). Our love of stamping things as unfit to read for sex, violence, religion, etc.– all of our favorite things as a people– is just one of the ways in which this manifests. Thanks, puritan colonists!
The Most Challenged list for last year is really interesting. For one, it’s awesome that Scary Stories keeps showing up. I bought the first one of those at the Book Fair at my middle school. I must’ve been 10 years old, and man I loved it. I still have nightmares about that damn scarecrow. Also unsurprising are the His Dark Materials books, since they got a resurge with the movie.
But seriously… how ridiculous.
And then there’s the list of Frequently Challenged or Banned Classics, which is always amusing. Some of the things on this one are extremely WTF. I don’t want to live in a world without The Great Gatsby or The Grapes of Wrath (two of my all time favorite American books/writers– when people from other countries ask me why America is the way it is, I direct them to those two). Also very pleased to see lots of Henry James there, since I’ve been reading a lot of his novellas and shorts in this little writing lull, and he makes me very happy.
And for a bit of speculative WTF: The Lord of the Rings. Wow. I used to read those books like once a year (I’m one of those nerds who actually read The Silmarillion– a few times. One of my collection of tattoos is in Quenya. No, seriously.) and I couldn’t remember a single bannable offense in them, so I did a little Google search. I came up with this awesome site from a high school library that gives the reasons for the challenges, and get this, it’s apparently satanic. Er, in the good and evil sense? Because that’s totally what it’s about. Or maybe it’s the pointy ears on the elves. That’s pretty demonic. Pretty bastards.
What an honor to be on these lists, reviled by crazies everywhere. What’s your favorite on them?
*I realize other countries do this too, by the way. But I’ve never lived anywhere else long enough to be allowed to talk about it.
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Now playing: Clara Schumann – Piano Sonata in G Minor: IV. Rondo
via FoxyTunes
The best and craziest reason for banning on that list goes to Alice in Wonderland: “Animals shouldn’t use human language.”
Time to get down to the library and celebrate BBW, I think.
Ridiculous.
If it means lingering amongst these guys, I hope one day to make the banned books list.
If a book isn’t challenged by someone, somewhere, it probably isn’t worth reading. Cliche? Yes. But that’s how I really feel. Thanks for the reminder. Somehow this week always creeps up on me…
Also, Legolas and Gimli were totally gay for each other. As I recall, they argued over where to vacation together after the one ring was returned. I swear, it was like listening to an old married couple.
Oh wow…no Harry Potter this year! Or Breaking Dawn, which I really thought was going to make the list. Just shows that the people who are banning books really have no clue what they’re talking about.
And no, that doesn’t mean I advocate banning books. Quite the opposite. I’m just vastly amused as to what gets picked every year. Because yeah, Scary Stories? The most often replaced book in our school library, because either the kids “lose” it, or they completely wear it out.
I forgot to do a display for Banned Books Week at the school library. *sighs* I love putting them all out front and center so everyone checks them out. Especially when they’re good books they’d completely ignore otherwise.
Derek, HA! Definitely the best reason ever. Why do I imagine that person was in the NRA. (Not making a political statement or anything, just saying.)
Cate, I have no doubt that you will manage it. I look forward to reading your banned books with great pleasure.
Aaron, too true. Some cliches got that way because they’re just The Truth.
Nat, they totally did argue over where to go next, and then Gimli trotted off into the sunset (er, Eressea, anyhow) with him. It’s official.
(I just killed a part of my childhood by typing that.)
Sue, I knew exactly what you meant– like I said, it’s a total honor to be on The List! That’s pretty cool about Scary Stories. Not too surprising if I really think about it, but badass.
You know, I would’ve expected Breaking Dawn too, after everything I’ve heard about it… hm.
Amusing indeed.
Kim (Kipling), The Old Man and the Sea (Hemmingway), and To Kill a Mockingbird (Lee) to name a few…My God, if these radicals got their own way we wouldn’t have books at all. Sort of a Farenheit 451 scenario. Great post, Katey. Very thought-provoking.
Yeah, I’m seriously not understanding the lack of Breaking Dawn. We don’t keep it in the school library ourselves, just because I don’t especially want 3rd and 4th graders getting their hands on it. But that’s an age appropriateness issue. If I ran an eclusively middle school library, it’d be a different story.
In any case, I think all the middle schoolers have read it anyway. The only ones complaining about the lack are some of the teachers who don’t want to shell out for the hardcover.
My principal was debating banning Hunger Games this year; I’ll be interested in seeing if other schools jump on the bandwagon. I talked her out of it and the lit teacher backed me, but I’m guessing there’ll be other reactionary principals out there going “OMG, the kids are KILLING each other!” and missing the whole point of the book.
Danielle, totally. And what day is complete without a good laugh?
Alan, To Kill a Mockingbird totally changed my life. Awesome picks all around. And it’s a very Fahrenheit 451 scenario, yeah– I wish I could honestly say “that would never happen”, but you know. Democracy, Tyranny of the Majority. We love it though, really.
Sue, yeah, with you on the age inappropriateness– which is a completely different issue. I’ve seen some good discussions lately about parental discretion vs. censorship, and all. Very interesting stuff.
Man, I have Hunger Games high on my list for this Xmas’s book hoard. I build it up all year and then go crazy at once in December. The more you talk about it, the more I know I NEED it