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As you may or not know, yesterday was the start of Banned Books Week! We always celebrate here at The Magical Buffet. The American Library Association, along with assorted schools, stores, authors, and more, come together for one week to bring attention to continued attempts to limit what people can read.<\/p>\n
This year’s theme is, “Books Unite Us. Censorship Divides Us.” Sharing stories important to us means sharing a part of ourselves. Books reach across boundaries and build connections between readers. Censorship, on the other hand, creates barriers., from the ALA website<\/a>.<\/p>\n The books featured during Banned Books Week have all been targeted for removal or restriction in libraries and schools. And just like in year’s past, I’m here today to make you aware of the top 10 challenged books of 2020. The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom tracked 156 challenges to library, school, and university materials and services in 2020. Of the 273 books that were targeted, here are the most challenged, along with the reasons cited for censoring the books:<\/p>\n George<\/strong> by Alex Gino<\/p>\n Reasons: Challenged, banned, and restricted for LGBTQIA+ content, conflicting with a religious viewpoint, and not reflecting the values of our community<\/p>\n Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You<\/strong> by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds<\/p>\n Reasons: Banned and challenged because of author’s public statements, and because of claims that the book contains selective storytelling incidentsand does not encompass racism against all people<\/p>\n All American Boys<\/strong> by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely<\/p>\n Reasons: Banned and challenged for profanity, drug use, and alcoholism, and because it was thought to promote anti-police views, contain divisive topics, and be too much of a sensitive matter right now<\/p>\n Speak<\/strong> by Laurie Halse Anderson<\/p>\n Reasons: Banned, challenged, and restricted because it was thought to contain a political viewpoint and it was claimed to be biased against male students, and for the novel’s inclusion of rape and profanity<\/p>\n Reasons: Banned and challenged for profanity, sexual references, and allegations of sexual misconduct by the author<\/p>\n Something Happened in Our Town: A Child’s Story About Racial Injustice<\/strong> by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard, illustrated by Jennifer Zivoin<\/p>\n Reasons: Challenged for divisive languageand because it was thought to promote anti-police views<\/p>\n To Kill a Mockingbird<\/strong> by Harper Lee<\/p>\n Reasons: Banned and challenged for racial slurs and their negative effect on students, featuring a white saviorcharacter, and its perception of the Black experience<\/p>\n Of Mice and Men<\/strong> by John Steinbeck<\/p>\n Reasons: Banned and challenged for racial slurs and racist stereotypes, and their negative effect on students<\/p>\n The Bluest Eye<\/strong> by Toni Morrison<\/p>\n Reasons: Banned and challenged because it was considered sexually explicit and depicts child sexual abuse<\/p>\n The Hate U Give<\/strong> by Angie Thomas<\/p>\n Reasons: Challenged for profanity, and it was thought to promote an anti-police message<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/themagicalbuffet.com\/blog1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/5-True-Diary-Twitter-300x169.png\")
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian<\/strong> by Sherman Alexie<\/p>\n