Okay, so I’ve been posting daily during this Banned Books Week, but perhaps you’re reading this and feeling guilty that you haven’t dived into some banned book. You shouldn’t. The only people who should feel guilty should be people who are say, trying to burn books they haven’t read in a school’s furnace.
Bear in mind:
- If you’ve started reading a banned book, you don’t need to finish it this week
- If you haven’t started reading a banned book, you could just look at the various lists and start with one.
- If you’re not sure about the lists, ask friends and colleagues. I’ve had some great conversations this week already about some folks’ favorite banned books.
- If you’re not sure about your friends and colleagues (e.g., you suspect some of them would approve of burning books in school furnaces), that’s a bigger issue we can tackle later, but in the meantime, your friendly local library may have someone who can make recommendations
- If you don’t have time to go to the library this week or you’re just one of many Americans who find they’re not reading as much these days, you could see if you could read some short stories.
Now, not all of these short stories are banned, some simply get stern looks. And not all the authors of said short stories have banned books, but an overwhelming number of authors of banned books love these short stories and for good reason: they’re going to spark thoughts and generally elicit reader-based joy. Best of all, many of these stories may be in collections available via your library’s online app or for free through places like Project Gutenberg.