Book Musings

Books...

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I was reading this article yesterday evening regarding the challenging and banning of "offensive" books in America, and it got me thinking. Why do people get so irate about stories? I find it strange that someone would be offended by the opinions of a character in a book. These works of fiction are generally not trying to impart wisdom or opinion on how we should think or act- they are there to entertain. Many times the offensive opinions were perfectly normal at the time of writing and are now, therefore, being taken out of context. Often I am sure the complaints are made by people who haven't even read the books and are going on hearsay, namely when they become concerned that their child might have to read something a little more mentally challenging in school...

Do you think that books should perhaps have a "rating" as is the custom with films? The number of complaints regarding the many horrific horror, thriller or graphic action movies are less because people are more aware of what to expect, yet it still happens and even for films as tame as Toy Story 3! Obviously those books/films which have increased popularity will also show higher levels of complaints, so it's a somewhat skewed statistic.

But should we be continuing to consider the removal of such books as The Hunger Games from our school bookshelves due to "inappropriateness", or should we just be using their many complex messages to educate and broaden our minds...



"If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind".

The Top 10 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000

  1. Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
  2. Daddy's Roommate by Michael Willhoite
  3. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
  4. The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
  5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
  6. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
  7. Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
  8. Forever by Judy Blume
  9. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
  10. Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
This is a great article listing those in the top 100 list that you should read! 

Other notable inclusions in the top 100 include The Witches, James and the Giant Peach-Roald Dahl, To Kill a Mockingbird-Harper Lee, Are you there God? It's me Margaret- Judy Blume (and several others) and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer- Mark Twain. Yes, some of these books contain bad language and  potentially sensitive topics but they also are classic literature and contain brilliant and entertaining stories. As Judy Blume puts it: 

β€œ[I]t's not just the books under fire now that worry me. It is the books that will never be written. The books that will never be read. And all due to the fear of censorship. As always, young readers will be the real losers.”

What do you think? Is America over-reacting?! Or do people have legitimate concerns about exposing such impressionable young minds to potentially damaging subjects?

Beki x

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