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.

Banned Book Week, Sept. 27- Oct. 4

It's banned book week. Celebrate your freedom to choose what you read!

The Ten Most Challenged Books of 2007,
in descending order (from Paper Cuts):

1. And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
2. The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
3. Olive’s Ocean by Kevin Henkes
4. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
6. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
7. TTYL by Lauren Myracle
8. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
9. It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie H. Harris
10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

How many have you read?