This week is “Banned Books Week” and I’ve seen a lot of posts against the practice of banning books. As a long time reader I often scoffed at those trying to ban books, however, now that my beloved daughter entered first grade I see things differently.
1 ) Books can give you paper cuts.
2 ) Books can make you angry and sad
3 ) Romance books gives a young, impressionable lady unrealistic view of life
4 ) Mysteries hurt the brain too much
5 ) Paranormal is just … freaky and G-d knows I need my sleep and wake up enough times without being woken up more times than I should.
6 ) Biographies are scary
7 ) History books are boring and really, who needs to know about the past when the future is so bright?
8 ) Stopping to read books will free up some time for her to help around the house (wishful thinking), watch wholesome TV shows and practice her hand/eye coordination with video games.
9 ) Reading can give her the unrealistic idea that life is “fair” and that the good guys actually win.
Of course banning books has many other benefits:
1 ) Many banned books have become best sellers.
2 ) Banning books allows us to identify the idiots among us.
3 ) Banning books entices our children “to read with promises of vulgarity” (see video below).
Did I miss anything?
Zohar – Man of la Book
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Ha! Yes they can give you paper cuts, which is why I read more and more on my Kindle! As the parent of a teen who reads nothing unless forced and a nine year old that I have to make stop reading I have differant views on books depending on the child. For the teen, I would love to see her read just about anything at this point and the little one? I am still right there with her when she is picking out books. I dont believe in book banning but I believe in positive selection for the little readers. There is plenty of time in her life for her to read crap.
ctny
Books make you *gasp* think, and realize that there is more to the world than your little neck of the woods.
Wonderful post.
You missed that fact that most banned books were never, in fact, banned. Challenged, maybe, but there’s not a single one that has never been accessible.
And let’s not forget the number one banned book of all time (on a worldwide scale): the Bible.
Thanks for the comment Sharon. I actually didn’t list any banned books. I have a feeling though that one of the main reasons that the bible gets challenged often is simply pushback.
Another reason is because books teach kids to think for themselves, we wouldn’t want that. Imagine the chaos it would create.
Now you’re getting it. We wouldn’t want that would we?
Flippin’ awesome post! LOVE it!
Came here thru Juli’s post. What a delightful take on banning books.:)