Really Random Tuesday #54: Banned Books and a Book Winner

Pick a book, any book.  Chances are good that it's been banned at one time or another.  You might be be surprised at some of the seemingly innocent books that have been banned over the years, books pictured below, as well as numerous others, including James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl, Black Beauty by Anna Sewell, and Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.

For school, my daughter is currently reading a novel that I also read during my school days, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a book that has been banned in the past.  And she recently read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee for school, which is on the list of banned books below.  According to the official Banned Books Week website, the top 10 banned books of last year are:

1. ttyl, ttfn; L8r, g8r  (series) by Lauren Myracle
2. The Color of Earth (graphic novel series) by Kim Dong Hwa
3. The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins
4. My Mom's Having A Baby! A Kid's Month-by-Month Guide to Pregnancy by Dori Hillestad Butler 
5. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
6. Alice (series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
7. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
8. What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones
9. Gossip Girl (series) by Cecily Von Ziegesar
10. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

This year, Banned Books Week lasts from September 30 through October 6.  BBW began in America in 1982, in response to the great number of books that have been banned by schools and libraries for various reasons, such as offensive language, and sexual and religious content.  2012 marks the 30th anniversary of BBW.  In conjunction with BBW, Sheila from Book Journey is hosting a cleverly named special event this week for readers, Jump on the Banned Wagon, which I learned about on Petty's blog, Pen and Paper. 

You might want to exercise your freedom in celebration of BBW and read a book that is or has been banned. The book I'll be reading this week is most likely on a banned book list right now, Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult (my final novel for The Jodi Picoult Project).

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Please help me to congratulate the randomly chosen, lucky winner of The Forgetting Tree by Tatjana Soli,  Harvee from Book Dilettante.  If you didn't win this time, please check the right side of my blog for other book giveaways.  I often add new giveaways to my sidebar, so be sure to visit again soon.

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Appearing on random Tuesdays, Really Random Tuesday is a way to post odds and ends--announcements, musings, quotes, photos--any blogging and book-related things you can think of.  Often I announce my book giveaway winners in these posts.  If you're inspired by this idea, feel free to "grab" the button for use on your own blog, and indicate your participation in the comments so I'll know to stop by.  For other recent Really Random Tuesday posts, please visit Naida's blog, the bookworm, and Vivienne's blog, Serendipity Reviews (after today, I won't be mentioning other recent RRT posts).  As always, your comments are welcomed.

Really Random Tuesday #53: September, a Book Winner, and Reading Resolutions

The breezes taste                           
Of apple peel.
The air is full
Of smells to feel-
Ripe fruit, old footballs,
Burning brush,
New books, erasers,
Chalk, and such.
The bee, his hive,
Well-honeyed hum,
And Mother cuts
Chrysanthemums.
Like plates washed clean
With suds, the days
Are polished with
A morning haze.
~September, John Updike

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The randomly chosen winner of the delectable novel The Color of Tea by Hannah Tunnicliffe is Jinky from Jinky is Reading.  Please help me to congratulate her! If you didn't win this particular giveaway, please take a look at the other exciting book giveaways I have listed on the right side of my blog.

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~Some Random Book-related Thoughts and Resolutions~

• I am not reading enough.  I need to set aside more time to read, if only in the evenings. (As autumn approaches, it's supreme to anticipate reading with a lit, fragrant candle on a nearby table, enhancing the experience.)
• I need to complete the reading challenge I created, The Jodi Picoult Project.  After I read one more novel by Jodi Picoult, Sing You Home, I'll host a giveaway in celebration, as I've mentioned before.  
• I will read more for pleasure and less out of a sense of obligation to anyone else.  This means not accepting as many books for review from authors, agents, and publishers.  I'm selective about what I read, and will continue to be that way.  

Do you have any reading resolutions to share?

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Appearing on random Tuesdays, Really Random Tuesday is a way to post odds and ends--announcements, musings, quotes, photos--any blogging and book-related things you can think of.  Often I announce my book giveaway winners in these posts.  If you're inspired by this idea, feel free to "grab" the button for your own blog, and leave a link to your post in the comments.  For other recent Really Random Tuesday posts, please stop by Peppermint, Ph.D., Vivienne's blog, Serendipity Reviews, and Sam's blog, Booked on a Feeling.

Your comments are welcomed, as always.

Mailbox Monday

Like many book bloggers, I receive an extraordinary amount of books in the mail; I'll highlight just the most recent books for Mailbox Monday, a meme created by Marcia from A girl and her books, hosted this month by Alyce from At Home With Books.

From TLC Book Tours, I received All There Is, stories compiled by Dave Isay, for an upcoming blog tour.  I've read StoryCorps before, and look forward to reading these love stories next month.

Simon & Schuster sent me Crazy Enough by Storm Large.  I'm in the middle of reading this memoir now, and plan on reviewing it soon.

Yay!   I found out today that I won a fabulous $25 gift card from Amazon on BookQuoter's blog, a thousand Books with Quotes.  Thank you very much, BQ! I'll spend some of it to get Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult, my third selection for The Jodi Picoult Project.  After I reach my goal--to read and review three books by this author--I'll be hosting a giveaway, so be sure to stop by then for a chance to win.

What new books arrived in your mailbox, or otherwise, recently?