HAPPY BANNED BOOK WEEK!

I always sing "It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year" when Halloween approaches, and for the last few years I've really began enjoying poking sticks at people who are unjustifiably self-righteous, and Banned Book Week is one of those events that I may start singing this tune to. I especially love it because Alamogordo holds a special place in the pantheon of banned books: in 2002 (before I moved to Cloudcroft) there was a Harry Potter book burning organized by a local preacher. The irony is that later he was seen leaving the movie theater with his two young nieces/nephews/I don't know: the movie they were seeing? Harry Potter.

2012's list of the top ten most challenged books are:

1. Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey.Reasons: Offensive language, unsuited for age group


2. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie.Reasons: Offensive language, racism, sexually explicit, unsuited for age group


3. Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher.Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, sexually explicit, suicide, unsuited for age group


4. Fifty Shades of Grey, by E. L. James.Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit


5. And Tango Makes Three, by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson.Reasons: Homosexuality, unsuited for age group


6. The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini.Reasons: Homosexuality, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit


7. Looking for Alaska, by John Green.Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited for age group


8. Scary Stories (series), by Alvin SchwartzReasons: Unsuited for age group, violence


9. The Glass Castle, by Jeanette WallsReasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit


10. Beloved, by Toni MorrisonReasons: Sexually explicit, religious viewpoint, violence

http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/

Bookless public library opens in Texas

No physical books. Period. 10,000 ebooks. LOTS of computers and you can check them out for use with your ebook reader.

I'd like to see this place if I ever get down around San Antonio.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/09/14/222442870/bookless-public-library-opens-in-texas