Tag Archives: banned book

Banned Books Awareness: “50 Shades of Grey”

Some call it fan fiction, while others call it “mommy porn;” but the fact is that whatever you call it, Fifty Shades of Grey, a New York Times #1 bestselling novel by E. L. James, has become an international hit. Set in Seattle, it is the first in a trilogy that follows the relationship between a recent college […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “The Dirty Cowboy”

Last Thursday (4/19/2012), the Annville-Cleona School Board in Pennsylvania voted 8-0 to remove an award-winning children\’s book, The Dirty Cowboy, by Amy Timberlake, from its elementary schools after a student\’s parents objected to its illustrations. Board Vice President Gordon Waldhausen was absent, but President Tom Tshudy said, “We take review of this type of thing […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “Slavery by Another Name”

Being that these are the final days of Black History Month 2012, I thought it wise to share a news story that is also sadly apropos to the subject of censorship. The Equal Justice Initiative is a Montgomery, Alabama-based organization founded in 1989 to provide legal representation for the indigent and incarcerated. Bryan Stevenson, director […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “Ulysses”

The classic novel, “Ulysses,” by Irish author James Joyce, was published as a serial between 1918-1920, and then as a single volume in 1922 in France.  It celebrated its 90th birthday on February 2. Widely-regarded as one of the greatest novels of all time, it even initiated the creation of an international holiday, Bloomsday, celebrated […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “Waterland”

Last week I reported that the Plymouth-Canton Schools in Michigan resolved a challenge to the book Beloved; but the same parents that objected to that title also have their torches aimed at another novel- Waterland, by Graham Swift. Matt Dame, along with his wife, Barb, complained that “Beloved” was inappropriate because of passages that deal […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “Beloved”

Students at the Plymouth-Canton Schools in Michigan got a crash course in politics this week. That’s because one family launched an official complaint on December 20, 2011 to have the fictional novel Beloved, by Toni Morrison, banned from the AP English curriculum due to racial themes, sexual content, and passages about ghosts (the spirit of […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “Stuck in the Middle”

The campaign against freedom doesn’t just limit itself to the literary classics of Shakespeare and Mark Twain. Works of fiction and non-fiction, both traditional and contemporary, are recurrent fodder for the flames. But did you know that even comic books are kindling for the fires of ignorance? Edited by comics icon Ariel Schrag, a 2007 […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “The Hunger Games”

The Hunger Games is a Young Adult novel by Suzanne Collins that was first published in 2008; a major movie adaption is also scheduled for release in 2012. But did you know that it is the fifth most challenged and controversial book of 2010? The novel centers on Katniss, a 16-year-old girl living with her […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “Brave New World”

“Brave New World” was criticized when first published in 1932 for having a weak plot and characterization. \”Nothing can bring it alive,\” one review quoted; but it is now considered a classic. In 1999, the Modern Library ranked “Brave New World” fifth on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. […] … learn more→

Banned Books Awareness: “Holy Blood, Holy Grail”

Censorship has a variety of points along its dark spectrum- from the outright removal of books to mere challenges; both fiction and non-fiction works are frequent targets of the flames of ignorance for various reasons. Sometimes a book comes along that, by virtue of being so controversial, causes lines to be drawn in the sand […] … learn more→