I just realized that this week is banned books week, from September 25 – October 2. I’m so happy that we got our blog “live” just in time to celebrate! I’m sure Andi planned that timing as she worked on our redesign. 🙂
According to the American Library Association’s website, banned books week, “is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment “.
We have a great opportunity to celebrate that as we read through Ulysses. In fact, we’ll have the pleasure of reading many challenged or banned books as we make our way through the top 100 books of the 20th century, since quite a number of them made the list!
Check out the ALA website at www.ala.org for some cool information. You can see why different books were challenged or banned and sort by author, year or decade.
The listing for Ulysses simply states, “burned in the U.S. (1918), Ireland (1922), Canada (1922), England (1923) and banned in England (1929).” Other classic books have a lot of specific information on the reasons behind their challenges. I don’t remember Catcher in the Rye being as bad as some people think it is, as the list of challenges goes on and on for that one. But we have 63 more books to read before we get to that one!
I’m going to celebrate banned books week by getting past page 10 in Ulysses. Happy reading!
Heather Paquette 
Well of course I knew that! 😉
Happy Banned Book Week to you!
How interesting that many of the 100 challenges were banned at one point. I wonder did people gravitate to books that were deemed ‘taboo’ for the allure or did people really like the work? Interesting to ponder….
What list of the top 100 are you all reading? and why were other not invited to read along?
Hello!!
Interesting that Tommy and I went to the same high school, albeit ten years apart, and I read 6 books from the list. (I didn’t count the ones I read the first time I started reading this list FROM THE BOTTOM up!)