Banned book week.
I just got a good from Doc Ern's site. It's about Banned Book Week, which runs from September 24 to October 1. The idea is to take the list of 100 most frequently challenged books and highlight the ones you've read.
As I am an avid reader this one really hits close to home for me. So here's my list.
Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
Forever by Judy Blume
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Giver by Lois Lowry
It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine
A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Sex by Madonna
Earth’s Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
The Witches by Roald Dahl
The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
The Goats by Brock Cole
Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
Blubber by Judy Blume
Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
Final Exit by Derek Humphry
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
The Pigman by Paul Zindel
Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
Deenie by Judy Blume
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
Cujo by Stephen King
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
Ordinary People by Judith Guest
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
Fade by Robert Cormier
Guess What? by Mem Fox
The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Native Son by Richard Wright
Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies by Nancy Friday
Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
Jack by A.M. Homes
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo A. Anaya
Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
Carrie by Stephen King
Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
Arizona Kid by Ron Koertge
Family Secrets by Norma Klein
Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
Private Parts by Howard Stern
Where’s Waldo? by Martin Hanford
Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
Sex Education by Jenny Davis
The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
As I am an avid reader this one really hits close to home for me. So here's my list.
Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
Forever by Judy Blume
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Giver by Lois Lowry
It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine
A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Sex by Madonna
Earth’s Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
The Witches by Roald Dahl
The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
The Goats by Brock Cole
Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
Blubber by Judy Blume
Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
Final Exit by Derek Humphry
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
The Pigman by Paul Zindel
Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
Deenie by Judy Blume
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
Cujo by Stephen King
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
Ordinary People by Judith Guest
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
Fade by Robert Cormier
Guess What? by Mem Fox
The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Native Son by Richard Wright
Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies by Nancy Friday
Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
Jack by A.M. Homes
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo A. Anaya
Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
Carrie by Stephen King
Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
Arizona Kid by Ron Koertge
Family Secrets by Norma Klein
Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
Private Parts by Howard Stern
Where’s Waldo? by Martin Hanford
Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
Sex Education by Jenny Davis
The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
If you'd like to play, please do.
Squirl chattered at 5:19 PM
28 comments
I saw this at mrtl's, too. Very interesting. I LOVED Little Black Sambo, as a child. A couple of years ago, we were at a local art museum, in the children's room, and found a book called "Sam and the Tigers," an updated, politically correct version, which is also a wonderful book. I bought both for LG. Not only are they two great books, but the story of why it needed to be written differently was a rare opportunity to have "show and tell" about non-intentional racial insensitivity.
Hi, Susie, what a great opportunity for a lesson for LG. I still think the old stories like Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn should stand as they are. Times were different then and these stories are great for explanations like you were able to have with LG.
I loved Little Black Sambo, also, Susie. And now I'm going to go get "Sam and the Tigers" because it IS a fantastic way to illustrate how insidious subconscious assumptions can be.
I just counted the ones on your list here Squirl, and I've read twenty of the books on it! Aack! Does that make me a rebel? PLEASE tell me that if I am, that at least I have a cause....! ;)
Eclectic, twenty, I'm impressed. You are definitely a rebel, my kind of rebel.
Now, I was going to leave you a comment about how you really should try the Jean Auel books, and then I decided that maybe I shouldn't be pushy. Also I found the first one to be a little hard to get past originally.
Then I went over to Ern's to see what kind of new comments were left at her post and I see yours and that you've read them!
Wellllll? Arentcha gonna bold them?
;-)
Silly Squirl (trix are for kids).
Sorry, Kitty, but if you have to be a social outcast it might as well be for reading books, right?
Danielle, I did a brain fart on that one. For some reason I didn't remember the name of the series. I love the books. I just wish she'd put them out more rapidly. Ten years is a long time to wait for the next in a series. Since Trix are for kids, I had Rice Krispies for breakfast. :-)
UNBELIEVABLE!!! Judy Blume and Shel Silverstein? Give me a BREAK!! Book banners always frost my ass.
I work with a couple of hardcore Baptists that think we're misguided for allowing our son to read Harry Potter. Naturally, they haven't read them!
I must be the biggest social outcast here. I encouraged my KIDS to read most of the books on this list. Oh the shame of leading these young souls to hell! ;)
tshsmom, you know, this reminds me of a bumper sticker I saw once. I had to read it twice before I realized that the person really believed what it said. It was something like:
Be careful if you leave your mind too open. It might fall out.
If the place called hell includes people that read these books, then I guess that's where I want to be.
Oh my goodness--I read a lot of bad books--teehee
I was actually going to ask for a suggestion for something good to read as I have a bit of free time at lunch nowadays...which one of these many books would you suggest? I've read the full "Clan of the Cave Bear" series by Jean Auel and enjoyed them....
Hi, Effie, aren't the Jean Auel books fun? She just does so much research that it takes too long for her to put the next book out. :-)
If you haven't read Harry Potter yet, I highly recommend it. The church people who are worried that it's about witchcraft don't realize that this is an entirely make-believe thing from J.K. Rowling's imagination. They're great good vs evil stories, good morality tales, and just a good, fun read.
If you've already read Harry Potter, then I'd say that most of the others that I've read have decidely chilling effect. I guess I'm mostly thinking about ones like Brave New World and Lord of the Flies.
I also just started another Steven King, Dreamcatcher. I'll see how that one goes. Let me know what you decide to read at lunch.
Well, I've read Brave New World and Lord of the Flies but not Harry Potter yet....I think though I'll try some Stephen King...if you think Dreamcatcher is good, I'll try that one first....
Yeah--she takes SO long to put out the next book--as soon as you finish one you want to read the next and now I'm just waiting for her next one....I've got the idea that Durk is going to end up fighting her younger child or something....
Effie, have you ever read any Stephen King? If not, then I don't know which one I'd recommend as a first. I read The Stand first. It's long, but it's good. I also liked IT. That one's a little (read a lot) freaky. Enjoy whatever you choose.
Ooooh, this is a good one. I will have to do this one, too. Book banners make me want to buy brains for the literarily challenged.
There's a lot of Toni Morrison on the list. Which, of course, means that now I have to read a bunch of Toni Morrison books.
Somewhere I have the Anne Rice "Sleeping Beauty" trilogy, which I would be happy to lend you. But, um, you might be embarassed when you start to read.
And why the fuck is "Slaughterhouse Five" on this list? Seriously!
"Brains for the literarily challenged" Now there's a cause to which I would donate money.
Ichabod had read quite a few Toni Morrison books. We did listen to Paradise on tape. Very hard to follow. But a woman (very smart person) I work with had trouble with the book and was hoping the tape would be easier.
I should read some Anne Rice some day. Especially since you're now reading Harry Potter.
And, um, yeah, Slaughterhouse Five?
What are these people thinking? They're better at getting dirty connotations from books than we are fer dern's sake. Didn't I clean that up nicely?
Oh man, my word verification is kurdl, tee-hee
Oh--"The Stand", eh? I'll try that one first then....
I just looked over the list again and I saw that they have "How to eat fried worms" as a book that was banned. Why in heaven's name would they ban that?? I thought that was hilarious!
I started The Bluest Eye over the weekend. Pretty good so far!
Also, is Go Ask Alice good? I was reading about it online, and it lookede really interesting. Of course they didn't have it at our little po-dunk library. :)
Ern, if I recall correctly (this was a loooooong time ago), "Go Ask Alice" is a pretty compelling read. Not sure what I'd think of it now that I have a lot more life experience, but at the time, I was just enthralled with it, like a car accident you can't stop watching.
Squirl, what say you?
"Go ask Alice", eh Bucky?
Well--the library's closed on Monday's so there goes my reading time for the day. Oh well...
I played!
Effie, I never read the Worms book. The Stand is quite long, but is good Stephen King.
Ern, Ichabod read The Bluest Eye. I believe he liked it.
Go Ask Alice is about a teenaged girl who's not happy about her home life and does drugs. I kinda thought her snotty little ass should've been slapped, but then I read it as an adult. I used to have the paperback, but I'll bet I gave it away in one of my many moves. If I run across it I'll send it to you.
Bucky, it's probably better if you're a young kid looking for some thrills. The character didn't even seem to enjoy the drugs. She actually needed psychiatric care. Of course, it was way better than Tuned Out which I read as a senior in high school. That one was about drugs and was really stupid.
Effir. see above. :-)
Hmmm I have read 27 titles on this list, if you count reading whole series as just one of the titles. I will have to post mine and also I guess I need to get reading and catch up on the rest.
Jess, you should post yours. You are so well read on the banned books. I should've known you'd have such good taste.
Like Jess I've read 27 on this list (I posted my choices) and quite a few of them were read at school for english lit class or given to me by my mum (the Blume ones) I remember a friend's dad who was a teacher was shocked when I told him I read the Jean M Auel books when I was 12, because they are meant to be for adults. I stopped myself from telling him I read Lord of the flies when I was 9.
I don't reckon any books hsould be banned or considered controversial - it should be an individuals choice because all knowledge is good.
I don't like "horror" but I think Stephen King is brilliant, and I think he's a lovely human being, too. The Stand is, IMO, a GREAT book. So is Shawshank Redemption, by King. Different than some of his "horror" stuff. I read Go Ask Alice as a teen, where I learned a lot about sex, drugs and misery. I certainly remember it, but I don't know if I would keep reading it today. Not sure. I read Beloved. You have to really pay attention and suspend disbelief, suspend rationality to read Toni Morrison. I find her challenging, but worth the effort. I have heard that Beloved is the Morrison book one should start with. Not that they are a series, they're not, but that it helps you understand her style, which may help with the others.
You know, now that I think of it, I read Go Ask Alice at about the same time I read Going Down with Janis, about Janis Joplin, and the two probably run together for me, with the sex and drugs.
Susie - the Janis Joplin book sounds waaaaay more interesting.
I suspect I might find Go Ask Alice a little overdone now, but I'm almost curious enough to look it up and have another perusal.
I've read 21 of these books.
My Stephen King collection helped my number count.
I had a "Little Black Sambo" Golden Book probably from the late 1950s, in which Sambo was from India. Is this the same plot as the book mentioned on the list?
Mark me down for a bunch too. Judy Blume and JK Rowling to start with. Funny how I read most of my banned books as a kid, yikes lol. Thanks for sharing the list, very interesting indeed!
Song, a lot of books are read by kids who are younger than the age for which they were written. I'll have to come check out your post.
Susie, Stephen King's horror stuff gets pretty freaky. But he does have an enjoyable writing style. I'd like to read some Toni Morrison one of these days.
Bucky, I'm sure I got rid of my copy of Go Ask Alice.
Sierrabella, I haven't read all the Stephen King books on the list. One of these days. Are you going to post a list of yours?
August, I never read Judy Blume, but I do love J.K. I think our group of bloggers are have also been avid readers since a very young age. Thanks!
I have to add my 2 cents, this list/blog entery has hit a home run mark with me!! I passed on the link to the ALA and the list to some members of my family and friends and wooohoooo what an uproar it caused! They wasted NO time in sending me back emails indicating that the books on this list promote evil, occult, and drug use among children. (Shame shame Judy Blume! LOL *snarfle) I countered that it was up to parents to educate their kids in what was "acceptable" reading, not parents or outraged citizens to go banning books just because they didnt like how the message was delivered! lol
I live in a community of Harry Potter Banners. They are afraid to even look at the cover for gawds sake! Evil and withcraftery and the desire to ride a broomstick might overwhelm them and make them swoon with satans desires or some such reasoning as that!!! But the same religious people were standing in line and camped outside the theatre the day the last LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy came out in theatres!!!! Now could someone please tell me the freakin logic of that?
*snicker*
Anyway, sorry to be so longwinded when you have no clue who I am but I so love to peep in on your blog (and sis and brother) and I am so thankful you posted about the books as it opened up a great email snowball fight in my own family and friends circle.
I am proud to be a rebel, and an open minded reader of more than 50% of these books!!!!
Thankyou.
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