Banned Book Week.....2015's most Challenged Books

Welcome to Banned Book Week....
It's during this week that we celebrate the Freadom to read. All to often now a days books and library materials are challenged due to their content. Honestly I think that this happens way to frequently. Here is the list of the American Library Associations top ten most challenged books of 2015:



1) Looking for Alaska, by John Green
Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, and unsuited for age group.
2) Fifty Shades of Grey, by E. L. James
Reasons: Sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, and other (“poorly written,” “concerns that a group of teenagers will want to try it”).
3) I Am Jazz, by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings
Reasons: Inaccurate, homosexuality, sex education, religious viewpoint, and unsuited for age group.
4) Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out, by Susan Kuklin
Reasons: Anti-family, offensive language, homosexuality, sex education, political viewpoint, religious viewpoint, unsuited for age group, and other (“wants to remove from collection to ward off complaints”).
5) The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon
Reasons: Offensive language, religious viewpoint, unsuited for age group, and other (“profanity and atheism”).
6) The Holy Bible
Reasons: Religious viewpoint.
7) Fun Home, by Alison Bechdel
Reasons: Violence and other (“graphic images”).
8) Habibi, by Craig Thompson
Reasons: Nudity, sexually explicit, and unsuited for age group.
9) Nasreen’s Secret School: A True Story from Afghanistan, by Jeanette Winter
Reasons: Religious viewpoint, unsuited to age group, and violence.
10)Two Boys Kissing, by David Levithan
Reasons: Homosexuality and other (“condones public displays of affection”).

Some of these challenges seem petty and trivial. For more information of these books and several others visit the American Library Associations Website! 

Banned Book of the Day!

Banned Book of the Day: 1984 by George Orwell; it has been banned for social and political reasons and for sexual content. The book was even burned in the U.S.S.R for its negative views against communism; and reading it could have gotten you arrested. 

Have you read this banned book? If so, please share your comments at www.facebook.com/thebookbabeofde

Banned Book Quotable of the Day!

The Book Babe Reviews A Classic: Anthem by Ayn Rand

                                           

                                                       Classic Book Review: Anthem by Ayn Rand

Anthem was one of the first books by Rand that I have ever read. This short novella was extremely interesting but not at all what I expected. In the world that Rand shapes individuality is a crime. Free thought is a crime. Having Passion is a crime. Falling in love freely is a crime. However, there is Equality 7-2521 that is curious and wants to go against the grain. He has no interest in living within the confines of his appointed lifestyle and job (as a street sweeper). It all starts with him praying to become a scholar because deep down he knows (or thinks) that they have free thought and he knows he is intelligent enough to be a scholar. But those dreams are dashed when he is assigned the job as a street sweeper. While cleaning the streets, he stumbles upon a sewer grate the is unmarked and upon inspection he finds that there are materials there to invent something. Equality finds and is able to harness electricity. He knows that he has to keep it a secret until the meeting of the scholars. While developing the electric box he meets Liberty 5-300; who he promptly names "The Golden One". It is almost love at first sight. She finds him unusual and handsome and eventually names him "The Unconquered"  because he is like no other man and seems to be able to think for himself.  He wishes for her to be the same; honestly we have very little insight into how she thinks. Which I understand because its only a short novella and she is not the main character. Eventually the moments between them grow and the first act of her really showing that she cares for him is a simple one. She brings him water, cupped within her hands and he calls her "dearest one". Finally the scholars are meeting and he comes to the scholars with his invention; and we discover that they are not as free thinking as one might think. They safely follow the rules and will not allow for a street sweeper to change the status quo. All Equality wanted to do was make life a little easier for everyone else by providing them with electricity. Once rejected by the scholars he escapes into the woods; a place no one dare goes. Only to be followed by "the golden one". They travel through the forest and eventually happen to find a house in the mountains; inside this place they find books and eventually they discover that their society is wrong for making them lose their individuality. It is not until now that they take names. They also learn that their society was not always this way; and Equality (now know as Prometheus) vows to take all that he has learned back to the city he came from. He will lead a revolution of enlightenment. 

My Thoughts:

I was stunned by this book; mainly because of the style in which it was written. The characters describe themselves as "we" and they have no real names; just names given to them by their government. Every single thing in their society is controlled tightly. They know nothing of love and are in fact allowed to "mate" every spring; this happens randomly and the men are paired up with a woman that he does not know. The mating happens and the children that are born from these unions are taken from their mothers; never getting to know either parent. What I loved about the book is that Rand slowly shows us how Equality (AKA Prometheus) comes into his own. How he rejects the constructs of his society to become an individual. This spoke to me because sometimes, especially in the society we live in being an individual is frowned upon. Think about how many times we have commented on someone with a weird fashion sense or quirky personality. We describe them sometimes as not "normal"; when actually normal is boring and in fact difficult to obtain, describe and maintain.  Rand stressed the importance of personal growth and knowledge and of seeing oneself as separate from society/the group. Another thing that is important to note is that in the book Rand lets us know that "free thinkers, artists, and writers" were punished or killed for creating. I can see where this could be a problem in a society. Think about the Nazi Party during WWII; they punished musician and writers. The same could be said of school districts in the U.S. that challenge and attempt to ban books. I can honestly say that this book was a pleasant surprise and I do look forward to reading more of Rand's work in the future. I gave this book 4/5 stars on Goodreads. 

Quotes I  Loved: 

 "Your eyes are as a flame, but our brothers have neither hope mor fire. Your mouth is cut of granite, but our brothers are soft and humble. Your head is high, but our brothers cringe. You walk, but our brothers crawl, we wish to be damned with you then to be blessed with our brothers" 

"I know not if this earth on which I stand is the core of the universe or if it is but a speck of dust lost in eternity. I know not and I do not care. For I know what happiness is possible for me on earth. And my happiness needs no higher aim to vindicate it. My happiness is not the means to any end. It is its own goal. It is its own purpose"

"For the word "We" must never be spoken,save by one's choice and as a second thought. This word must never be placed first within man's soul, else it becomes a monster, th root of all the evils on earth, the root of man's torture by men, and of an upspeakable lie. The word "We" is as lime poured over men, which sets and gardens to stone, and crushes all beneath it, and that which is white and that which is black are lost equally in the grey of it. It is the word by which the depraved steal the virtues of the good, by which the weak steal the might of the strong, by which the fools steal he wisdom of the sages" 

Banned Book of the Day

Banned Book of the Day; Beloved by Toni Morrison. It has been challenged for “sexual material”, “violence”, and “inappropriate topics”. 

Here is the synopsis: 

Staring unflinchingly into the abyss of slavery, this spellbinding novel transforms history into a story as powerful as Exodus and as intimate as a lullaby. 

Sethe was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not free. She has too many memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. Her new home is haunted by the ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved. 

Have you read this book? If so, please share your thoughts in the comment section of this post! 

In the spirit of Banned Book Week; an old movie quote!

Banned Book of the Day!

The Diary of Anne Frank was challenged in Michigan in 2013 for "pornographic" passages. 

I first read Anne's Diary at about 11 or 12. First in School and then on my own. I have since gone through four copies of the book. Either I lost them, gifted them or they where torn and tattered. Anne's story was extremely important for me because I felt awkward and bookish as a teenager and she was like me in some ways. She was a young person trying to make sense of the world she lived in. It was because of Anne that I kept, and still keep a journal. Also her diary is one of my favorite books to give away as a gift. The diary remains one of my dearest literary experiences and it's a book that is changed me and parts of it are stamped on my heart. 

FREE YOUR MIND....READ BANNED BOOKS....

For more information on book challenges and what libraries are doing to battle censorship

visit the American Library Association at www.ala.org 

What Fahrenheit 451 can teach us about protecting the Freadom to Read !

As a junior in highschool I was assigned Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 and I can honestly say without a doubt that that book changed my view on what it means to be able to read what I want when I want. For those of you that have never read the book let me give you a little overview. Guy Montag (the main character) is a "fireman" who burns books. In Montag's society reading and independent thinking are discouraged and just the act of owning books can lead to imprisonment, scorn and your books being burned. It is custom in their society to watch lots of television and listen to their "seashell radio's". Does this sound familiar to anyone? When one reflects about the society in which Montag lives you can see the similarities to our current society. I think it is safe to say that Bradbury was way ahead of his time; the book was published in 1953. When you fast forward to 2014 the children of today are more interested in electronics then books and will spend more time mimicking celebrities than being themselves. In the book there is one scene in which an elderly woman; once she is caught with her books so refuses to leave them and opts to be burned alive. Of course, this is a little extreme but this lady did not want to live without access to knowledge. I can definitely identify with the old woman. I grew up in a family were reading was not the "in" thing to do. I was always the kid that was seen with a book in her hand and from age four until now I have never stopped yearning for knowledge. This yearning led me to college and graduate school and got caught up in a spirit of wanting to share what I love and know with others (and so the Bookbabe was born). So as someone that loves to read and has a healthy appetite for learning it boggles my mind that people would want to ban books. Especially books that are geared towards children. Books like The Diary of Anne Frank, The Wizard of Oz, Captain Underpants and the Harry Potter Series. When I read the challenges to these books I am always amazed by why there are challenged; and it always makes me wonder if the people that challenged the books ever really read them. A majority of the time (at least from what I have encountered from those dead set against Harry Potter or the Davinci Code) the answer is no, they haven't. So if you never read the book then how can you be against it. Honestly; Ray Bradbury gave us a real prophetic look at what the future would look like. Its rather sad and heart breaking; but, that does not mean that things have to stay this way. So book nerds here is your challenge (and you must accept it) reach out to friends and family and talk to them about these amazing books your reading. Give away copies of Fahrenheit 451. Talk about the importance of turning off the electronic devices for a few hours and getting comfy with a book. Suggest books you love and most importantly share your love for knowledge. Always, Always celebrate the freadom to read.