The week of September 24th-October 1st is National Banned Books week. What this basically is, is a protest against books that others have tried to get banned for various reasons and most hard-core readers like myself usually encourage and try to read as many banned books in that week's time.
I do not like that people try to get books banned and that's putting it mildly. I mean, there's a difference between not letting your child read something and then basically telling other people what they are able or should let their children read and that pisses me off. Don't tell me what I can and can't read and what I should let my child read. That's for me to decide and I will when the time comes.
Case in point I wouldn't let my daughter if I had one read the Pretty Little Liar series or the Gossip Girl series. Point blank, I don't like the subject matter and I don't think they're for the audience that they pretend to cater to plus it's not necessarily something I would want my daughter to think of as cool and try to emulate. To me it's the same thing as the people who don't let their children read Harry Potter or the Twilight series because of what they deem as the occult references in your book. You don't want to read Harry Potter? Fine; but don't sit up here and tell me that my child shouldn't read it if I choose to let them because while I don't think the girl's series I mentioned is appropriate for a teenager doesn't mean I'm going to say "Hey your daughter shouldn't read them either and I'm going to work to make sure no daughter can ever!!" /shrugs It's your daughter do what you will with her.
And the things about banned books and books that are forbidden is that it only makes people want to read it even more. My dad told me in middle school I could no longer read romance novels but I still found a way and snuck them. So I realize without someone having to tell me that if I had a daughter and she wanted to read those books she probably would I just hope she would be as smart about it as I was (or at least as smart as I think I was) and hid it from me well enough to where I do not see them laying around and she better use her own money to buy it (meaning money from the jobs she does). Anyway that's a tangent for another post LOL.
The issue here is and has always been with me the audacity of people. Who are you to tell me what I can't read and what my kids can't read? That's a very personal choice and when people try to ban books, in my opinion they're working towards some type of dystopic society where Big Brother is always watching and monitoring what you do and read. It's so easy to not pick up a book you don't like and not read it. I do it all the time. I dislike the Anita Blake series intensely simply because of the subject matter of the (I think) fourth book. But I just choose not to read it; I choose not to recommend it to my friends; what I don't choose to do is work to get it banned and removed from the shelves because that's not the way I work. Some people love that series personally I just can't stomach it.
So if you don't want to read Harry Potter because don't like the references to magic fine. If you don't want to read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe because of the violence in it fine. If you don't want to read Huck Finn because of the repeated use of the "n" word fine. Just don't tell me I can't.
And in honor of Banned Books week, at some point I will be reading a banned book like I have done for the past few years. If you want to join me do so. If not it's alright I won't hold it against you.
Unless you try to make it so no one can ever read those books. Then we'll have issues.
