Banned Book Week

September includes a week that librarians hold near and dear to their hearts Banned Books Week, Sep. 24 through Oct. 1. During this week, we renew our vow to defend readers everywhere and to ensure that the freedom to read is not challenged.

 

Visit your local library to see displays of books that have been challenged throughout the country at one time or another.

 

The most challenged books of 2009 can be found on the American Library Association’s website. To give you a heads-up, listed below are some of the titles that received attention during the last year and the reasons for their challenges: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou. House of Night series, by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast.

 

On Monday, October 4 at 6:30 p.m. there will be a program entitled “The Great Textbook War: The Past Is Present” which will be a revealing look into the events, thoughts, and emotions that came together in Kanawha County in 1974 when parents objected to the contents of the textbooks used in their children’s schools.

 

There will be a display, the airing of a Peabody Award winning audio program, and a discussion led by Stan Bumgardner. The program is provided by the Kanawha Valley Historical and Preservation Society, through a grant by the WV Humanities Council.

 

The Circulation Department’s Cara Hamlin will be in charge of a Read Out during which participants will read from a supply of challenged books. You are encouraged to call Cara and volunteer to read. Call her at 304-528 5700.