Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read

Since 1982, he last week of September has been designated as “Banned Books Week.” The annual event reminds Americans not to take our precious democratic freedom for granted.

Each year, the American Library Association (ALA) helps compile a list of the most challenged books–titles where there has been an attempt to remove or restrict the work from a school or library.

Books that appear on The 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books list include children’s favorites such as the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, the Goosebumps series by R.L. Stine, and Where’s Waldo by Martin Hanford. Classic books are also on the list, such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Click here for the list of challenged books from the ALA.

The University of Tennessee Libraries invites all students, faculty and staff to celebrate their freedom this week by reading a banned or challenged book. Visit the library’s banned books display in Reference, Room 135 Hodges Library, or click here for the list of books featured in the display.

The American Booksellers Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression; the ALA; the American Society of Journalists and Authors; the Association of American Publishers; and the National Association of College Stores sponsor Banned Books Week every year. The Library of Congress Center for the Book endorses the observance.