Polls, Discussions and Debates at WhosRight.com

Celebrate Your Right To 'fREADom' With Banned Books Week: Which Is Your Favorite?

"Censorship cannot eliminate evil.It can only kill freedom."

Excerpt from a letter to 28 newspapers, signed by Ed Morrow, president, American Booksellers Assn. and Harry Hoffman, president, Walden Book Co., Inc. (1990)

"Held during the last week of September since 1982," according to Wikipedia, "Banned Books Week not only encourages readers to examine challenged literary works, but also promotes intellectual freedom in libraries, schools, and bookstores. Its goal is "to teach the importance of our First Amendment rights and the power of literature, and to draw attention to the danger that exists when restraints are imposed on the availability of information in a free society.""

Whether a war waged over objectionable words and phrases, or opposition to the of presentation of challenging political or sociological concepts, the pen is proven mightier than the sword in the contempt some have for the strength of the written word. Censorship of reading materials is an on-going crusade to keep age-inappropriate material out of youngsters hands, immoral ideas away from easily-influenced minds, and deplorable descriptions far from delicate sensibilities-- but at what cost?

When I was in elementary school, I graduated quickly from tepid one-note series like The Babysitters Club to the heavy-petting and perilous adventures in Sweet Valley High. While I wasn't yet tackling the classics on a regular basis for recreational reading, in middle school I made the jump to Stephen King, Anne Rice and more serious-- and seriously fucked up-- material. I was in fifth grade when I checked out the drug and sex-laden cautionary tale Go Ask Alice from the local library. I'm embarrassed to tell you how long it scared me into staying straight laced. (Yeah, it was that-- not the acne, awkwardness, or the stack of books I carried about--that kept me from being cool.) I was 11 when I spent the summer reading Stephen King's thick phobia-inducing horrorgasm, It. It wasn't just that these novels were more mature, they also had more fascinating plot lines and more advanced emotions and moral dilemmas than some of the insipid material that was age-appropriate for me at the time. They also offered better dialog and an enriched vocabulary, an adult one. My parents and grandparents knew what I read, often borrowing from their collections, and decided I could handle it. Eyebrows raised at the library when certain titles were borrowed, but nothing was ever pulled from my curious clutches. I reveled in reading what I wanted and it shaped me into an adult with life-long love of communication and storytelling that carries into not only an appreciation of books, but also theatre, music, film and many aspects of culture.

Taking away graphic comic books, politically-charged fiction, pieces with violent vignettes, drug abuse, or a collection of curse words, does a disservice not only to us impertinent sorts who wander outside of recommended reading but also to the authors and great minds who create these works to shock the senses and stimulate imaginations.

A handful of my favorite controversial titles are listed to get us started, but many more titles can be located via Google search or Wikipedia's list of banned books. Leave your suggestion in the comments and we'll add it to be voted on. What's your favorite scandalous softcover or reprehensible hardbound piece? Why?

Casandra Armour

Excited For the 'Wicked' Sequel, 'Out of Oz'?

Yes

The Wicked wiz is working his wondrous ways again.

The master of the L. Frank Baum reboot, and revisionist renditions of other inherently evil 'fairy tales' like Snow White, Gregory Maguire's gripping best-selling 'Wicked Years' series concludes this fall when Out of Oz: The Final Volume In The Wicked Years premieres on November 11.

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West began the saga in 1995 with the sordid tale of Elphaba, the green girl with a grim existence and the political, social, and ethical environments that drive her destiny to become the infamous character.

Son of a Witch followed in 1995, chronicling the story of Elphaba's son Liir. The continuing narrative of a fictional family could easily grow stale or cloying, and some critics panned it as such, but Maguire still delivered the most darkly ambiguous takes on good and evil in the Wicked sequel. In an interview from the Son of a Witch audio CD, Gregory Maguire gave two reasons for writing the book: "the many letters from young fans asking what happened to Nor, last seen as a chained political prisoner, and seeing the Abu Ghraib torture photographs."

Maguire's website describes the story as "seen now through the eyes of the Cowardly Lion—the once tiny cub defended by Elphaba..." in 2008's A Lion Among Men, exploring enigmatic concepts of war and destiny.

[Potential **spoiler alerts.** If you haven't read the prior three, you may not want to read on.]

The quartet will close with the release of Out of Oz, out this fall. The following is a synopsis from goodreads.com:

" The marvelous land of Oz is knotted with social unrest: The Emerald City is mounting an invasion of Munchkinland, Glinda is under house arrest, and the Cowardly Lion is on the run from the law. And look who’s knocking at the door. It’s none other than Dorothy. Yes, that Dorothy."

"Amid all this chaos, Elphaba’s granddaughter, the tiny green baby born at the close of Son of a Witch, has come of age. Now, Rain will take up her broom in an Oz wracked by war."

"The stirring, long-awaited conclusion to the extraordinary bestselling series begun with Wicked, Out of Oz is a magical journey rife with revelations and reversals, reprisals and surprises — the hallmarks of the brilliant and unique imagination of Gregory Maguire."

For those who can't stand the anticipation until autumn, it is rumored that when Gregory Maguire’s Facebook page reaches over 25,000 fans, the first of several excerpts from Out of Oz will be available to those fans who have joined. (If any other fans can find confirmation, please share.)

Did Son of a Witch and A Lion Among Men leave you less interested in the legendary lost girl's allegory, as some critics have complained? Or are you eager to read the culmination of Elphaba's clan's story?

Casandra Armour

If you read a book that took place at a real restaurant, would you go there for dinner?

Yes

We are doing some market research and your opinion is valuable!

Ian Anderson

'Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close' Trailer Premiere: Will The Film Live Up To The Book?

Yes

Will the beautiful avant-garde style of author Jonathan Safran Foer's 'Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close' translate from the written word to the big screen? Will Jeopardy! prodigy Thomas Horn, previously untried as an actor, be able to delve into the complex psyche of young Oskar Schell? Can the film meet the high praise of the extraordinary book? [If the full-screen trailer is not visible above, click 'Join the debate' below to view the trailer.]

Casandra Armour

Celebrate Your Right To 'fREADom' With Banned Books Week: Which Is Your Favorite?

Excited For the 'Wicked' Sequel, 'Out of Oz'?

If you read a book that took place at a real restaurant, would you go there for dinner?

'Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close' Trailer Premiere: Will The Film Live Up To The Book?

WhosHot! - Most " 1 Vote = 1 Vomment <br /> 1 Comment = 10 Vomments<br /> Leaderboard updated every 14 days Vomments"

WhosActive