Banned Books: A Professor's Perspective

Today, I'm turning over my blog to an old college friend, Wendy Barry, who sat through more English literature classes with me than I care to remember. We read novels and poetry, philosophy and political treatises. After Colgate, I moved to Boston and dabbled in the advertising world, while she made better use of her English degree and went on to Vanderbuilt to obtain her Masters.

Wendy now lives down South with her wonderful husband, talented son, and uber-spoiled dogs, and teaches English for a living. She also writes fabulous poetry for fun, and I swear that one of these days I'll make it to one of her live poetry readings! Promise!

And without further ado, I'll turn over the blog to Wendy...

Over the years, there have been a lot of books banned in a lot of places. Before there were even papyrus rolls, there were scribes rubbing out the good parts with hammer and chisel. Of course, what constitutes the good parts or the scary parts or the incendiary parts changes over time and place. When the Pharaoh Akhenaton was in charge, he made the kingdom of Egypt a monotheistic nation. Most Egyptians did not like that, so after his death, they got rid of all the hieroglyphics referring to Ahkenaton’s reign and blasphemous single-god craziness.

It’s funny how what is unacceptable changes, isn’t it?

I teach English and composition at an open door institution in one of the most educationally backwards states in the nation. Many of my students, many more than you would like to believe, struggle with reading. They don’t want to read, they avoid reading at all costs, and I sometimes have them read out loud, they falter and halt over three syllable words, like syllable, for instance.

Last year, at a local high school, one of the books on the summer reading list was challenged. The book in question apparently had bad words and described some bad behavior in it. A few parents judged it as an inappropriate choice for all students, which seems unfair.

The bad words, in particular, are what concern me. What are these bad words, anyway? Are they words that run amok and shoot up a movie theater? Are these words scalding newborns? Do they light puppies on fire?

No, they don’t, because words are not inherently bad, nor good, but tools for us all to communicate the good, the bad, and the ugly of human experience. Sure they are sometimes sharp tools, and people can be cut by them, but they are our tools, the most important in an ongoing battle to retain our humanity.

What of my students, and they are many, who not only don’t read well, but are not allowed the words that come closest to expressing their experience? What about the victims of child abuse, domestic violence, dysfunctional families, poverty and lack of education, who are not allowed to say how ****ed up that is?

There might be some things we should ban, but they are not books, and they are not words.

Here are my suggestions:

• assault rifles
• fracking
• cigarettes
• more Garfield movies
• egg salad sandwiches

All books should be read. No books should be banned. If anything should be banned, it should be the yapping about books without having read them.

Banned Books: The Catcher in the Rye

I can't remember if this book was required reading in 9th or 10th grade English class, but I still have my copy. I couldn't hand it in at the end of the semester because I kept re-reading it, each time feeling as if I were closer to cracking Salinger's secrets and understanding Holden Caulfield more completely. I've since read other Salinger books, but at the time this novel was so radically different than anything I'd read previously that I needed to keep it. And I still have it.

I tried to read it again recently, and found I didn't have the time or the patience to sit down and give it the attention it needs... there are so many layers of meaning, beyond the "bad language" and "innapropriate behavior" and "sexual content" that has parents trying to ban it from their school's curriculum.

Have you read The Catcher in the Rye? Was it required reading? What did you think? Have you read it again lately?



Out of the list of the Top 100 Novels of the Twentieth Century... Many of them have been banned and/or challenged. The list below shows those challenged and banned - for the complete list of Top 100 books, go HERE.

See how many of these classics you've read - Count them up and leave it in the comments. I've only read 23 of the 46 listed. (I guess I have more reading to do - and soon!) How about you? Which are your favorites?

1. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald
2. The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
3. The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck
4. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
5. The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
6. Ulysses, by James Joyce
7. Beloved, by Toni Morrison
8. The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding
9. 1984, by George Orwell

11. Lolita, by Vladmir Nabokov
12. Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck

15. Catch-22, by Joseph Heller
16. Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
17. Animal Farm, by George Orwell
18. The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway
19. As I Lay Dying, by William Faulkner
20. A Farewell to Arms, by Ernest Hemingway

23. Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston
24. Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison
25. Song of Solomon, by Toni Morrison
26. Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell
27. Native Son, by Richard Wright
28. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, by Ken Kesey
29. Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
30. For Whom the Bell Tolls, by Ernest Hemingway

33. The Call of the Wild, by Jack London

36. Go Tell it on the Mountain, by James Baldwin

38. All the King's Men, by Robert Penn Warren

40. The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien

45. The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair

48. Lady Chatterley's Lover, by D.H. Lawrence
49. A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess
50. The Awakening, by Kate Chopin

53. In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote

55. The Satanic Verses, by Salman Rushdie

57. Sophie's Choice, by William Styron

64. Sons and Lovers, by D.H. Lawrence

66. Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut
67. A Separate Peace, by John Knowles

73. Naked Lunch, by William S. Burroughs
74. Brideshead Revisited, by Evelyn Waugh
75. Women in Love, by D.H. Lawrence

80. The Naked and the Dead, by Norman Mailer

84. Tropic of Cancer, by Henry Miller

88. An American Tragedy, by Theodore Dreiser

97. Rabbit, Run, by John Updike

Banned Books: Forever

Today, my blog is being taken over by my friend, author and comedienne Nancy Howland Walker. Actually, she's currently working on a cruise somewhere off the coast of South America, where her biggest dilemma is needing a new pair of sandals 'cuz she's worn out two pairs with all the fun she's having....

...but she managed to take time out of her busy schedule to weigh in on the subject and celebrate Banned Book Week with us. Take it away, Nancy!

Banned Book Week

by Nancy Howland Walker

Banning books? I’m all for it! 

No, not because I’m some rabid Christian Coalition right-winger who wants to protect our youth from morally corrupt influences, and not because I’m an Authoritarian nut job who sees “Muslims” and “Socialists” in every shadow and  wants to protect our fragile American society from subversive concepts. But for the simple and universal truth – You want what you can’t have!

 

If you (or anybody!) are told that you absolutely can’t have something, chances are that you will wish for, fantasize and dream about that thing and chase it with fevered abandon. And if you actually DO come to possess the prized object, it will become your “Precious.” You will lovingly examine it and jealously guard it, clenching onto it like a dog does his favorite toy.

I was a Russian major in college, and learned all about the cultural underground of the Soviet Union. Because the State kept a tight, controlling grip on speech, Soviet citizens could not take books for granted. Literature was valued highly, studied and discussed, and an intellectually vibrant arts culture formed. (Hey! I actually retained something from college?!)

My own experience with banned books goes like this: In sixth grade, I became aware of Judy Blume’s best seller, FOREVER. I didn’t know anything about this book, except that it had “sex parts” in it, and everyone’s Mom had forbidden everyone to read it. Hence, EVERYONE was trying to find a copy and read it! This of course meant that I also developed a burning desire to hold the book in my hot little hands and find out what was deemed so inappropriate for us. When I got home from school, I rushed to my mother and told her about this controversial book and asked her if I could read it. From what my friends said about their mothers’ reactions, I fully expected MY Mom to fly off the handle and forbid even saying the title or looking at its cover!  But she said yes, like it was no big deal, and that I could read it. That all-consuming, obsessive, burning desire I had had only a moment before fizzled right there and then into nothingness.

So as an author, I say, “Ban my book!” Please. Make a big deal over it, telling people of all ages that they cannot and should not read about how to create songs on the spot. That instant songwriting is morally and culturally subversive!  Indeed, that songwriting of ANY kind will stop the universe and lead to the destruction of all creatures great and small, and therefore my book is forbidden! Then I will SURELY be number one in my category on Amazon!

Oh, and by the way, I have yet to read FOREVER.

 * * *

In addition to being a fabulous friend and a certified ne'er-do-well who flits around the globe (and gets paid for it), Nancy is a comedienne, actress, and author of INSTANT SONGWRITING.

Instant Songwriting is the ultimate how-to book for musical improvisers and an excellent resource for songwriters. With over two decades of musical improv experience, Nancy Howland Walker guides you with clear, logical and fun step-by-step exercises, from the very basics of putting a song together, to highly advanced song techniques. Whether you are new to the art form or experienced, your songs are improvised or written, or you do this for fun or profit, Instant Songwriting helps you take your song skills to the next level. Musical tracks are included for each exercise – to accompany you as you practice and master each step along the way. Now go and become the Songwriting Diva you were meant to be!

It's available on Amazon - and it might be banned any day now, so go buy your copy as soon as possible!

What are you reading to celebrate Banned Book Week?

Banned Book: The Outsiders

Today I'm turning over the reigns to another fellow author, Cindy Young Turner, author of Thief of Hope. She's talking about Banned Books, and her own favorite from her childhood - THE OUTSIDERS, by S.E. Hinton.

My Favorite Banned Book, by Cindy Young-Turner

There are a number of books on the banned books like that I’d consider favorites. One of the most memorable was The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. I think I was in middle school when I read it and I got it from one of the Scholastic book clubs. Those things were great. I was probably one of the only kids who ordered books like All Quiet on the Western Front and some book about a nuclear holocaust. Nothing but light reading for me!

That’s why I loved The Outsiders so much. It felt so real and it was so different from what I was used to as a kid growing up in a quiet suburb of Massachusetts. The Outsiders had tough kids trying to make it on their own, but mostly it was about loyalty and friendship and family. It was easy to relate to Ponyboy and his struggles, and I loved his interest in writing because I was also a young writer. It’s one of the first books I remember making me cry, and if you’ve read the book, you know why I did.

The Outsiders has been banned because of its realistic portrayal of ‘60s gang violence and family dysfunction (per Wikipedia), plus teen smoking and drinking. These days a book like that seems tame. YA is a lot edgier now (how many people died hideous deaths over the course of the Hunger Games trilogy?) and authors are often pushing the boundaries. But these are problems kids deal with on a regular basis. We all want to read books that reflect our experiences and the world around us. Violence and gangs are still an issue, dysfunctional families are still an issue. You can’t sugarcoat the world because kids will see right through it.

I’m happy to say that my parents never censored my reading when I was young. The library was a magical place where I spent a lot of time. I remember the children’s/YA section was an entire floor. My mom would go upstairs to the adult section and I’d have free reign of the basement floor. In looking over the list of banned books, I’ve read quite a few of them. I hope to instill the same love of reading and curiosity and open-mindedness in my own daughter. And when she’s old enough, I’ll happily share my paperback copy of The Outsiders with her.

Cindy's book, Thief of Hope, is available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

 

 Sydney, a street urchin and pickpocket in the town of Last Hope, has managed to evade the oppressive Guild for years, but there is no escaping fate when she's sentenced to death for associating with the resistance. After she's rescued by a wizard, Sydney is forced to accept that magic-long outlawed throughout the Kingdom of Thanumor-still exists, and the Tuatha, a powerful faery folk, are much more than ancient myth and legend. When the wizard offers a chance to fight the Guild and bring Willem, bastard prince and champion of the Tuatha, to the throne, Sydney embraces the cause as a way to find her own redemption. But Sydney's fear of the Guild, distrust of authority, and surprising connection to the Tuatha threaten Willem's success. Can she untangle the strange threads that entwine her life not only to the fate of the kingdom, but also to Willem himself?

About the Author:

Cindy has always been an avid reader and became fascinated by mythology and Arthurian legends at a young age. She quickly decided she enjoyed creating her own worlds and characters and set to work writing her own stories. She won her first writing contest at age twelve, a short story inspired by the style of Edgar Allan Poe. Branching her interests from mythology to classic supernatural tales to medieval history and then to fantasy seemed to be a logical progression. Her fantasy novel, Thief of Hope, was published in 2011.

A native New Englander, Cindy currently lives in the Mid-Atlantic region with her family and each year wishes for more snow. Visit her at her website at www.cindyyoungturner.com

Banned Books: The Hunger Games

I guess I wasn't totally surprised to find THE HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins on the list of Top 10 Banned Books for last year. Even though the book was first published in 2008 (and assigned as summer reading for incoming freshmen to Harwich High School in 2010) it didn't receive the close attention of parents until the movie and the associated hype exploded last year.

I was one of the first readers to check this book out of my local library in January 2009 - and then had to wait until September for CATCHING FIRE to be released! And then wait again for MOCKINGJAY. (The agony!) It seems crazy to me that people would want to ban such engaging works of literature, books that make you think outside the box, beyond your current life.

THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy was third on the list for last year. The website quotes the reasons, abbreviated as: "Reasons: anti-ethnic; anti-family; insensitivity; offensive language; occult/satanic; violence."

The original Publisher's Weekly review compared the book to Aldous Huxley's BRAVE NEW WORLD, another favorite of book banners, but that's aimed at adults. Parents object to THE HUNGER GAMES being targeted at children.

I explained Banned Book Week to my twelve year old, and explained that some parents wanted to take THE HUNGER GAMES out of schools and local libraries. That some parents didn't feel the book was appropriate for children. Here's what she wrote in response - all in her own words:

HUNGER GAMES PARANOIA

By Teagan

    I believe that The Hunger Games should not be banned from book stores and libraries. The main character, Katniss, is trying to protect her family from starvation, and ends up saving her sister from being thrown into the arena.

Parents can tell their children what not to read, by not letting the book into their home, but taking it from libraries and book stores is like having jurisdiction over what other peoples’ children can and cannot read.

The whole series is about family, teamwork, and love. It is an inspirational, message to young readers that they can accomplish the greatest tasks. The Hunger Games is a great, well written book that is an experience that readers should not be deprived of.

 Today my daughter and I are re-reading our favorite parts of the trilogy in honor of Banned Book Week. What are you reading?