My Challenged Book of the Day is cute and funny Sex Kittens & Horn Dawgs Fall in Love, by Maryrose Wood; my Banned Book for today is Athletic Shorts, by Chris Crutcher. Check out the American Library Association’s website this week to learn the difference between banned and challenged, and find out what this book-banning, book-burning thing is all about. Speak, think and read freely!
The ALA lists the ten most challenged YA books as:
- Athletic Shorts, by Chris Crutcher
- To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
- The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison
- Deenie, by Judy Blume
- The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
- Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson
- Forever, by Judy Blume
- The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
- The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton
- The Pigman, by Paul Zindel
- Lord of the Flies, by Wiliam Golding
- Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
I am proud to say that I have read all of these books! Go, rebel readers!
A very cool opportunity for those who are great reviewers (and you know I mean YOU!): not only is the newest Edge of the Forest up and running (and do drop in to peruse the interview with the fabulous Rick Riordan as well as the other great pieces by the very talented writers and reviewers in the blogosphere), our Kid Lit Kelly is looking for reviewers for October. Give her a holler if you’re interested!
Another great list over at Bildungsroman: Sassy Sidekicks of Children’s Literature. Who’s the best Hermione to your favorite Harry or the helpful Diana Barry to your Anne? Add to the list, keep the ball rolling. And I’m late with this, but the Seventh Carnival of Children’s Literature is up, which is a great round-up of book reviews, as well as bloggings on topics from the troubles of to writing an algebra comic book (yikes!) to racism in literature, and more. Give yourself a few hours, and read through! You’ll be glad you did, and you’ll discover new bloggers whose musings you won’t want to miss. Meanwhile, heads up: next month’s book carnival is Halloween themed, and Scholar’s Blog says submissions are due October 15th.
And finally, via e. lockhart’s site, The YA Writer’s Cafe is back, Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. Pacific, 8:30 p.m. EST! It’s a chance to hang out with YA authors and listen and ask questions as they talk shop. The list of featured guests will knock your socks off. You don’t have to register, or be an actual author to hang out, listen and learn. Check it out!
I’d like to put in my 2 cents and say, yes, GO to the Banned Books Week website at the ALA–their lists of what’s been banned/challenged, where, and why, are fascinating. I spent an unexpected half an hour just browsing the site last night.
Thanks for the link! 🙂