Jump on the Banned Wagon

Celebrate Banned Books

September 30th - October 6th, 2012

Welcome to the Brunette Librarian, 

my little corner of the blogosphere!

I am a librarian and take the banning of books pretty dang seriously. Beyond someone thinking they have a right to tell you what to read or forbid it, it is a direct violation of our rights. 

I was asked to participate in the "Banned Wagon" week and am loving it! I love the sharing of banned books and getting that information out there.

Earlier this week I shared some displays I created, so if you have a minute, be sure to stop over and check out how we are celebrating at my little library in Missouri.

My favorite banned book is The Glass Castle. If you haven't ever read this book, oh my goodness. I have included my review below...

"The Glass Castle"  

Synopsis from Goodreads:

In the tradition of Mary Karr's "The Liars' Club" and Rick Bragg's "All Over But the Shouting," Walls has written a stunning and life-affirming memoir about surviving a willfully impoverished, eccentric, and severely misguided family.

My Thoughts:

    My book group picked up “The Glass Castle” this past month simply because of word of mouth. Everyone had heard about it (except me!) so we decided we better see what all the fuss was about. Definitely one that makes you think, without a doubt the author, Jeannette Walls has had a pretty extraordinary life. We actually started our book group with this question and I believe it really sums up a lot about this book, “If you saw your mother going through a dumpster in raggedy clothes while you were with you friends, would you stop to introduce them?”

     “The Glass Castle” is really broken into two sections - one part when Jeannette is a child and they live in the desert, while the second half has the family growing older, making future decisions, and basically living very different lives. Jeannette’s parents believed in a very basic life. They were absolutely fine with not having electricity or water, they ate what they had, and rarely thought about the future. They home schooled their children and moved dozens of times during their childhoods. As Jeannette grew older, she realized normal families didn’t live this way - they actually have food in their refrigerators and don’t have to eat just margarine.      Perhaps the most interesting point in this book, or perhaps what surprised me the most, was that the children knew the way they were living was terrible and none of them replicated the living conditions in adulthood. Their parents may be fine with not working, going to food shelters for every meal and living on the streets, but their children are most assuredly not.
     An interesting look at life that is utterly foreign to me, “The Glass Castle” is one of those books you share with your friends. Interesting and intriguing, I would definitely recommend this to those who like intense nonfiction reads. Our book club read it and boy, did we have an intense discussion!

So why was this BANNED?

According to Marshall University, 

two separate but documented cases have occurred these past few years.

2012 - - Challenged, but retained as part of the tenth-grade English curriculum in the Sade-Central City High School classrooms in Cairnbrook (PA). The 2005 best-selling memoir in which Walls describes her hardscrabble upbringing includes sexual assault, casual profanity, drunkenness, seeing the family cat pitched from a moving car, and having to drink ditch water. Even critics of the graphic book praise its theme - overcoming adversity.

2010 - -Challenged at the William S. Hart Union High School District in Saugus (CA) as required summer reading for the honors English program. The 2005 memoir chronicles the author's harsh childhood and family life and includes profanity, criticisms of Christianity, and accounts of sexual abuse and prostitution. Students have the option of alternative assignments that still meet objectives and teaching goals.

Other articles about the banning of The Glass Castle

• Book Ban Nixed - Glass Castle to remain part of curriculum
• Banned Books: When Choosing Summer Reading
• Parents Challenge Books Chosen for Summer Reading

Giveaway
In honor of Banned Books, I am going to be giving a $10 gift card to either Amazon or B&N - your choice. That way you can choose YOUR favorite banned book! I'd love it if you'd follow me, leave a comment with your email and boom... you're entered!

Please check out the other blogs 

and their favorite Banned Books at Book Journey!