Hey everyone!
As Banned Books Week has been underway for a few days now, there are a few topics, articles, and videos I wanted to share that I found interesting.
Book Challenges/Bans and Authors
The first topic is about the impact of banned books on the authors who write these books, which I’ve seen discussed in this tweet from Shaun David Hutchinson (We Are The Ants). There is a misconception that the publicity banned books receive helps authors profit from the negative press. However, many authors (especially debut and mid-list authors) will face financial struggles from these bans. Although not every author is impacted like this, it’s good to keep in mind that many are negatively impacted by the book’s bans/challenges as well.
Book Challenges/Bans in The UK (LGBTQIA+)
Earlier this week, I was wondering what book banning/challenges look like outside of the US, and this tweet from Bex Burgess demonstrates the climate in the UK. Although How to Be Ace is a great resource for those learning about what this term means and if it might apply to them, the fact that it discusses LGBTQIA+ topics (especially with the UK’s increasing violence against trans people) has been enough to be banned from many libraries.
Who’s hurt most by book bans and challenges? The Kids
Further tying in the importance of representation from Burgess’ tweet, Schuyler Bailar’s book, Obie Is Man Enough, depicts the struggles he faced as a trans kid getting into competitive swimming. In the Harvard Gazette, Bailar talks about how he wanted to share this story with other kids who may feel just like he did when he was young, but book banning is making it more difficult to reach the kids who need it most.
“We know when kids aren’t allowed to be who they are until they’re adults — or if they have to hide their identity — it’s harmful to them,” he said. “When we affirm children’s identities, we can actually save their lives.”
Schuyler Bailar, “Who’s getting hurt most by soaring LGBTQ book bans? Librarians say kids.“
Other highlights from the article include:
-Illinois is the first state to legally ban book bannings
–Washington Post Statistic: Only 11 people are responsible for 60% of book bans nationwide
–40% of book-banning cases include lists with 100+ books on them
I also want to share this interesting quote from the article:
Michael Bronski, Professor of the Practice in Media and Activism in Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality, said the challenges reflect political and social tensions due to the rapid change in acceptance of LGBTQ people.
Who’s getting hurt most by soaring LGBTQ book bans? Librarians say kids.
“We’ve had enormous progress [for LGBTQ rights],” Bronski said. “These book bans — along with the bans on drag shows, along with the attacks on abortion, along with the attacks on trans youth — are really a last-ditch effort, almost magical thinking [from conservatives], to stop this push.”
Top 50 Most Banned Books in the US
I was watching Reads with Rachel’s video about Nate Lemcke when she mentioned Bookish Realm’s videos about book bannings from the POV of a librarian. She has many videos discussing banned books, but her latest video is reacting to the 50 Most Banned Books in America.
If you want to read the Reader’s Digest list featured in the above video, you can check it out here.
Banned Book Read-Along and Discussions on Tiktok
Another creator mentioned in Rachel’s video is Rachel in Florida on TikTok, who not only discusses and shares her experience fighting book bans in Florida but also does read-along’s of the books on her page.
Here’s one of her read-a-long’s for the book The Adventures of Honey and Leon:
That’s all for today’s post! If you have any news, discussions, or resources to share, let me know in the comments below; otherwise, I will see you in the next post.
-Erin 🎃
Eclectic Erin 