Earlier this week I compared Banned Book week to Christmakuh and Mardi Gras. “Show me some skin and I’ll show you where the banned books are. Better yet, keep yourself covered. I’ll still point you to And Tango Makes Three and Harry Potter and Slaughterhouse Five.”
Nobody thought that was funny.
I love BBW, but I wish people recognized it all year. Idiots are forever challenging books. One day, when my little book baby Lethal is out in the world, I hope idiots challenge it. As Maureen Johnson said, “When a book gets banned or challenged, sales usually go UP, so if your goal is to STAMP IT OUT, your plan has failed.”
I once had a book in my library challenged. It was in my first week at my first librarian job and someone challenged Marguerite Henry’s “Mustang Wild Spirit of the West.” The book stayed in our collection.
It’s been a busy week, so I rounded up some BBW links of note.
Tom Federle wrote about resistance to his novel received for featuring a gay teen protagonist.
Here’s a map of where people challenge books.
My friend Kelly wrote about a challenge she received. Kelly also wrote about all the book challenges this month over at BookRiot.
danielle dreger 