Posted on October 2, 2015 at 12:00 AM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

It should come as no surprise that this week’s Friday favorites theme is banned books.

(It may, however, surprise you to learn that last Wednesday was International Blasphemy Rights Day.)

First, test your knowledge of frequently banned books in the New York Public Library’s quiz — or browse the American Library Association’s archived lists from the past decade.

Now, let’s talk about how we should react to Banned Books Week and the events that inspired it.

The New York Public Library suggested a variety of grass-roots actions you can take “to help foster a world where fewer books come under fire.”

Author Lauren Myracle — whose TTYL series of young adult books topped the ALA’s list of challenged titles in 2009 — asked some parents to calm down and let their kids read.

Another author, Jacqueline Woodson, also appealed to adults: Let’s just calm down, period, and discuss this civilly. (And yes, Woodson’s books have been banned.)

Slate contributor Ruth Graham goes one step further, in a post that questions why we still have Banned Books Week. “There is basically no such thing as a ‘banned book’ in the United States in 2015,” she argues.

On a much lighter note, Powell’s Books sifted through library records to find some of the stranger reasons books were challenged in Oregon schools, over the past 35 years.

And the Lit Hub invited its followers to contribute titles of “band books.” You can se their creations in the widget below.

Categories: Favorites

Tagged As: Bans and challenges

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