TGIF: Banned Books!

30 September, 2011 / / Uncategorized / 39 comments Share:

I’m participating in the TGIF @ GReads where we recap what happened on our blog and answer a thought provoking question. This week it’s all about banned books!

How do you feel about the censorship of the freedom to read? Do you think the education system needs to be more strict on what children are exposed to in books?

My mother never told me that I couldn’t read a book.  Come to think of it, she really didn’t monitor my reading at all once I was reading chapter books.  Other than Judy Blume, I really didn’t read YA as a young adult.  I read the classics and then some stuff that was probably not a good idea (Flowers in the Attic for a 13 year old? Not a great choice.)  My opinion of book censorship was shaped by my experience as a free range reader.  Aside from the occasional inappropriate choice, I don’t think I picked out anything on my own that was really all that bad.  When I see school districts banning books I have to ask…why?  The roll of a library is to provide, not restrict.  The role of a school is to expand minds, not shrink them.  How are we to understand who we are as a society if we read an edited version of Huckleberry Finn?  How will we know how far we have come if a senior in high school cannot gain perspective from reading Beloved?  We don’t protect children when we ban books, we handicap them.  If we shut them off from their own decision making and their own ability to decipher the world around them, how can we trust them to be our future leaders?

I understand that school districts want to chose certain books above others for use in the classroom, but to ban a book from the library and to mark it as harmful is the act of a scared and uneducated populace.  The idea that a book that mentions sex or drinking or *gasp* a gay character should be banned makes me laugh.  Turn on the TV and tell me what you see.  Gossip Girl?  Pretty Little Liars?  Pregnant teenagers who probably should have been reading, instead? If you’re worried about exposure, it’s waaaay too late. I think that we need to be very careful not to cross the line between finding age appropriate books and censorship.  It is easy to simply fall back on the you are too young to understand excuse when what we really mean is I’m not sure I  know how to discuss this and it makes me uncomfortable.  Young readers are naturally more open and curious and it’s rarely about what is “good” for them as much as it is about the hang ups of the adults around them.  Having said all of that, I do think that there should be guidelines for each age.  Truly, some subjects and books are more appropriate than others, but I like the term thoughtful rather than restrictive.  Think of it in terms of Jerome Bruner’s learning spiral.  Present information that is appropriate for the developmental level of the student and build on that as they get older.  It’s not the subject matter, but the way it is presented in light of the age of the reader.


It sounds odd, but when I hear about book censorship, it makes me kind of hopeful.  If people are threatened by books, if books scare them, it means the printed word is not dead.  Every time I hear about a book challenge, I know that there is an enlightened parent (like mine) who will march out and buy the book for their kid.  Or, maybe there’s a kid buying that book with their own money. As parents and educators we must be careful to choose books that deal with controversial subjects well and at what age that writing will have the most positive impact.  Like I said, thoughtful choices.  There is a reason for the expression: the pen is mightier than the sword.  Words have power.  We just have to remember that with great power comes great responsibility. 

(That sound you hear is me stepping off of my soapbox.)

So, what happened this week?

Reviews:  The Sweetest Thing
                  The Juliet Spell
                  Goodnight Tweetheart

Memes:  Top Ten Tuesday – Books I Want To Reread

I also won a copy of The Girl of Fire and Thorns from Epic Reads!  Very excited about that one!

Thanks for stopping by!!  I would love it if you would follow this blog. Let me know and I will follow back!

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39 responses to “TGIF: Banned Books!”

  3. Alexa

    I think you have a lovely point when you mention how people banning books makes you feel slightly hopeful. It does mean the printed word’s alive and what’s more, it means that people recognize it’s power.

    Reply
  5. Kristi The Book Faery

    I think that the written word has always held power-the fact that there are those that try and ban certain books only bring more attention to them-which in my ‘book’ is great :o]

    What isn’t great is to ban them from libraries! Who decides which book is ‘real’? I think that Elementary, Junior High and High School libraries should hold both the contempary and the classic, the controversial and the comfortable and leave it to the student and their parents to decide what is appropriate.
    I’m certainly not suggesting putting Lady Chatterlys Lover in an Elementary school but most libraries and most books have a suggested age limit on it or depending on maturity level.

    I loved your post and it was incredibly well stated and a joy to read! I’m a new follower!

    Reply
  6. Kristi The Book Faery

    I think that the written word has always held power-the fact that there are those that try and ban certain books only bring more attention to them-which in my ‘book’ is great :o]

    What isn’t great is to ban them from libraries! Who decides which book is ‘real’? I think that Elementary, Junior High and High School libraries should hold both the contempary and the classic, the controversial and the comfortable and leave it to the student and their parents to decide what is appropriate.
    I’m certainly not suggesting putting Lady Chatterlys Lover in an Elementary school but most libraries and most books have a suggested age limit on it or depending on maturity level.

    I loved your post and it was incredibly well stated and a joy to read! I’m a new follower!

    Reply
  7. Kristi The Book Faery

    I think that the written word has always held power-the fact that there are those that try and ban certain books only bring more attention to them-which in my ‘book’ is great :o]

    What isn’t great is to ban them from libraries! Who decides which book is ‘real’? I think that Elementary, Junior High and High School libraries should hold both the contempary and the classic, the controversial and the comfortable and leave it to the student and their parents to decide what is appropriate.
    I’m certainly not suggesting putting Lady Chatterlys Lover in an Elementary school but most libraries and most books have a suggested age limit on it or depending on maturity level.

    I loved your post and it was incredibly well stated and a joy to read! I’m a new follower!

    Reply
  8. JJ iReads

    That’s an interesting take on the subject, feeling hopeful when books are banned because it proves the written word has the power it has. I rather enjoyed reading your pov.

    Thanks for stopping by my blog.

    Reply
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