Freedom to Read! Read a Banned Book!

Next week, join me in celebrating the freedom to read during the American Library Association's Banned Books Week.

Some great children's books that have been questioned or banned over the years:

• Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
  Despite being the winner of the Newbery Medal, this book about a the death of a boy's close friend has been on the American Library Association’s list of the 100-most-banned/challenged books for years. 
• Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
  This popular picture book has been deemed "too scary for children" by many parents and libraries.
• And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson
  This picture book about same-sex penguin parents was the most challenged book for three years running, according to the American Library Association.
• A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
  This classic book of poems and drawings for children has been banned multiple times for encouraging, among other things, "messiness and disobedience."
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling
  One of the best-selling books of all time, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone has been questioned and banned repeatedly for its supposed encouragement of black magic.

Download the ALA's 2013-2014 List of Books Challenged And/Or Banned (pdf)>>