A Celebration of Banned Books


Published on Sunday, October 18, 2009 12:12 AM MDT

Rio Rancho Observer '€” Gary Herron photo

Mountain View Middle School eighth-grade students in Lorena O’Brien’s classes said they were surprised to see books in the Harry Potter series, John Steinbeck novels, “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and “Captain Underpants” had been challenged or even banned by some libraries. O’Brien’s class celebrated the recent American Library Association’s “Banned Books Week” by having a contest to depict banned books. Pictured is the the winning depiction, with students, clockwise from top left, Jacob Anderson, Matthew Cleal, Alex Schlesinger and Daniel Peterson. O’Brien said her class would read a once-banned book, “Lord of the Flies,” one of her all-time favorites.



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The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of the Rio Rancho Observer.

bookworm54 wrote on Oct 18, 2009 7:48 AM:

" Perhaps if children would be allowed to read so-called "banned" books at an early age, they would learn that there are other people in the world who have the same fears, feelings and dreams that they have -- and therefore become more well-rounded members of society, able to feel compassion for their fellow man instead of thinking only of themselves. Steinbeck is an example of literary greatness, and his stories speak of real emotion and true friendship. How sad that young people are being forced to read mediocre material that doesn't force them to analyze themselves as people... "

daelaeyni wrote on Oct 20, 2009 11:30 AM:

" I absolutely agree. My sister's a freshman in high school and all she reads are paperback novels about vampires and sex. It's sickening to know that my sister has never read such great books like the Diary of Anne Frank, To Kill a Mockingbird, and so many other good novels that I was introduced to in JUNIOR HIGH! It's sad that our schools are slipping so badly and not just in literature only. Has anyone noticed the penmanship of our students recently? When I was in school, good penmanship was a must. Kids handwriting these days are atrocious! How sad... "

Palinite wrote on Oct 21, 2009 2:42 AM:

" Interesting how those that claim that some books should be banned are often the same ones to state "You can't believe everything you read" and then believe the Bible is inerrant. They obsess over and abhor anything sexual in text, yet desire to have "intelligent design" taught in our schools. Then, and here is the real irony, they take their kids to see Ultimate Fighting and then wonder why their kids are so violent and fail in comparison to students from other developed countries. Censorship is never a good thing. Information and education is. "

rio rancho parent wrote on Oct 22, 2009 5:42 PM:

" Being worldly, and having traveled, I have noticed that students reading literature in this country isn't going to change the way they are, its bred in them to be thoughtless to other people. People on the continent in general are much nicer people and welcome strangers into their homes and everyday lives, I have never met such foul mouthed, self-centered people as Americans. SORRY!!! "

Realist wrote on Oct 26, 2009 6:49 AM:

" It's usually the parents that challenge the books, just to get some attention for themselves. They usually don't read the books that they want to ban, just go with what "someone" has told them.

I used to laugh when I was in high school when parents would demand that "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" be taken off of the shelves of the library. The seemed to forget who wrote the book.

At least Harry Potter and the The Golden Compass have "enlightened" parents enough to leave the Narnia books alone. "

John Smith wrote on Oct 29, 2009 7:38 AM:

" By the time I was a senior in High School I had read the most piopular "banned" books in the mid to late 1960s. "Cat's Cradle" was my favorite back then.
At 60 yrs. did it change me negatively? Well, I am far more cynical than the peer group I grew up with. I am deeply Conservative and have always been as far as I know. I did see the author's points of views and in some cases I have fought thenm my entire life and in some I have quietly accepted and mostly enjoyed. Thanx! "

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