The American Library Association notes that Banned Books Week is meant to focus on "celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment." Banned Books Week, first established in 1982, also showcases the benefits of free and open access to information, even if this information may be unorthodox or unpopular. Read more detail on the ALA website here.
Is your curiosity peaked? Wondering where you can perhaps find a comprehensive list of classic banned books over the years? Click here for the Radcliffe Publishing Course Top 100 Novels of the 20th Century - approximately 42 of them have been banned or challenged at some point.
Many of these titles are available at your local Richmond Public Library branch. Check our catalog for titles you would like to learn more about. Banned Books Week has events across the country as well - click here for a comprehensive events calendar, as well as a listing of the 513 challenges reported to the ALA's Office of Intellectual Freedom in 2008.
Pick up a book. See what the fuss is about. Celebrate your intellectual freedom, and stop by your local library and tell us what you think! It's no coincidence that the West End Book Discussion Group was reading The Catcher in the Rye this month...
Images: Newport Public Library, Lansing Public Library
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