I’ve been tagged for Banned Books Week

Did you know that we’re getting towards the end of Banned Book Week?

I was just tagged by Alpha Heroes for this week’s Banned Books Meme.  It’s going to be interesting, because I don’t think I really read that many banned books. Not because they are banned, but because they are part of genres I don’t normally read. Anyway, here’s the details on the meme…

How many have YOU read? Celebrating Banned Book Week 2008, here is the ALA’s list of the 100 most frequently challenged books from 1990 through 2000.

How to Play:

  1. Copy this list.
  2. Bold the ones you have read (or at least remember reading)
  3. Tag five people to play.

And now the list…

  1. Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
  2. Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite
  3. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
  4. The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
  5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
  6. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
  7. Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
  8. Forever by Judy Blume
  9. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
  10. Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
  11. Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
  12. My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
  13. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
  14. The Giver by Lois Lowry
  15. It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
  16. Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine
  17. A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
  18. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
  19. Sex by Madonna
  20. Earth’s Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel
  21. The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
  22. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
  23. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
  24. Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
  25. In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
  26. The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
  27. The Witches by Roald Dahl
  28. The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
  29. Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
  30. The Goats by Brock Cole
  31. Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
  32. Blubber by Judy Blume
  33. Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
  34. Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
  35. We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
  36. Final Exit by Derek Humphry
  37. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
  38. Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
  39. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
  40. What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras
  41. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
  42. Beloved by Toni Morrison
  43. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
  44. The Pigman by Paul Zindel
  45. Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
  46. Deenie by Judy Blume
  47. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
  48. Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
  49. The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
  50. Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
  51. A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
  52. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
  53. Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
  54. Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
  55. Cujo by Stephen King
  56. James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
  57. The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
  58. Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
  59. Ordinary People by Judith Guest
  60. American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
  61. What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
  62. Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
  63. Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
  64. Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
  65. Fade by Robert Cormier
  66. Guess What? by Mem Fox
  67. The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
  68. The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
  69. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
  70. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
  71. Native Son by Richard Wright
  72. Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies by Nancy Friday
  73. Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
  74. Jack by A.M. Homes
  75. Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo A. Anaya
  76. Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
  77. Carrie by Stephen King
  78. Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
  79. On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
  80. Arizona Kid by Ron Koertge
  81. Family Secrets by Norma Klein
  82. Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
  83. The Dead Zone by Stephen King
  84. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
  85. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
  86. Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
  87. Private Parts by Howard Stern
  88. Where’s Waldo? by Martin Hanford
  89. Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
  90. Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
  91. Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
  92. Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
  93. Sex Education by Jenny Davis
  94. The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
  95. Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
  96. How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell I think I did back in school….
  97. View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
  98. The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
  99. The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
  100. Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier

Total: 10

Alpha Heroes is also challenging people to read 10 more books from this list before next years Banned Books Week of 2009. Some of these books seem interesting (and I can’t believe Shel Silverstein is on the list), so I think I will join her.  In fact, I’ll tell you which books I’ll read.  They are:

  1. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
  2. Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
  3. The Witches by Roald Dahl
  4. Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
  5. Beauty’s Punishment by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice) – I had started this series, but I’ll finish it
  6. The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
  7. Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
  8. Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
  9. The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

So now I get to tag people…
Judi at Sidhe Vicious Reviews
Rachel at American Bibliphile
Amber at Amberkatze Reviews
Rhinoa at Rhinoa’s Ramblings
Samanta at Sam’s Book Blog

Come back and leave a comment with a link if you choose to participate!

About Jackie 3282 Articles
I am a 30-something SAHM with two adorable boys and a supportive husband who is very tolerant of my reading addiction. I love to read and easily go through about a dozen books a month – well I did before I had kids. Now, not so much. After my first son was born, I began to take my hobby of reviewing a little more serious and started Literary Escapism to help with my sanity. I love to discuss the fabulous novels I’ve read and meeting all the wonderful people in the book blogging community has been amazing.

6 Comments

  1. Found my way here through a maze of links after being tagged myself. :)

    You stole the words right out of my mouth when you remarked that you were surprised by Shel Silverstein’s inclusion on the list. He happens to be one of my favorite poets; he penned a poem that actually sparked my love of poetry way back in 6th grade called No Difference–still have it memorized too.

    And Roald Dahl? (Okay, maybe I can see why he may have been included, but c’mon.) And Madeleine L’Engle? It’s a flying shame how many I times I rolled my eyes going down the list. :D

    It breaks my heart a bit to see that people are actually moving to have some of these books censored. Some of those books helped inspire me when I was growing and that kind of privation to future generations just seems wrong. It feels like those kids would be getting gipped somehow.

  2. I’ve been reading the tagged lists all week and it seems that most of us have all read the same banned books. I think it has something to do with required reading in school.

    The one I’m most surprised by is Where’s Waldo?. Why on earth would someone want to ban Where’s Waldo??

  3. I think you’re right, Brie. From the top of my head, I do remember reading Silverstein, Zindel, Morrison, Angelou, Twain, Salinger, L’Engle, and Keyes as part of school reading assignments.

    And my eyes bugged out when I realized that Where’s Waldo? made the list. The first time, I must have glossed over it. From what I can gather, apparently, it “it features adult material such as ‘topless sunbathers,’ and other adult ‘hidden pictures'”.Hmm…I don’t remember any of that when I was searching for Waldo….

  4. Now that Ann-Kat mentioned that, I do remember the topless sunbathers. Not necessarily seeing them, but hearing that Where’s Waldo was getting censored because of it. Still, the book has no words! And all of the pictures are tiny.

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