Shocking Banned Books

Both the Merriam Webster and the American Heritage Dictionaries have been banned in various schools. The Merriam Webster was banned in a California elementary school in January 2010 for its definition of oral sex. Districts representatives said it was just not appropriate. 

The Illinois Police Association, along with 11 other states, tried to get libraries to remove this book in 1977 because it portrays policemen as pigs. I suppose we shouldn't have children's books with animals anymore. 

One of my all time favorite children's book, 'Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?', was banned in January 2010 by the Texas Board of Education because the author has the same name as an obscure Marxist theorist. The only problem with this is that no one checked to see if it was the same person..

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Banned Books That Shaped America

Banned Books That Shaped America 

1. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain

2. The Autobiography of Malcom X, Malcom X and Alex Haley

3. Beloved, Toni Morrison

4. The Call of the Wind, Jack London

5. Catch-22, Joseph Heller

6. The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger

7. Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury

8. For Whom the Bell Tolls, Ernest Hemingway

9. Gone With the Wind, Margaret Mitchell

10. The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck

11. The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald

12. Howl, Allen Ginsberg

13. In Cold Blood, Truman Capote

14. Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison

15. The Jungle, Upton Sinclair

Many of these books have been taught in the school systems and are obviously banned now. What is your opinion of these "America-shaping" books? This is just a short list - there are many more books on the following webite: http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/censorship/bannedbooksthatshapedamerica. Check it out and make your own opinion! Should these be banned for the reasons the website say? Are these books detrimental to the education of America? Let us know what you think!

And Tango Makes Three

And Tango Makes Three, by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson and illustrated by Henry Cole, has topped the Banned Book list since 2006, according to the American Library Association. It is the 4th highest banned book of the decade (ALA); Harry Potter, Alice, and The Chocolate War take spots 1, 2, and 3. 

The children's book tells the story of two penguins, Roy and Silo, whom live in Central Park Zoo. Roy and Silo are both males, which leaves them unable to have children of their own. Their zookeeper finds an egg and wants Roy and Silo to take care of it, so he places it in their nest. Through the egg's development, Roy and Silo take care of the egg together- making sure it keeps warm until it's ready to hatch. Once the egg hatches, a baby penguin is born. Roy and Silo decide to name him Tango. 

Seems rather harmless, right? A children's book about penguins... What's so wrong there? Well, according to the American Library Association, the top cited reasons for banning And Tango Makes Three are: "homosexuality, religious viewpoint, and unsuited to age group." Various school districts across the country have found the book's message to be alarming; a school district in Utah voted to keep the book off its shelves stating, "It didn't align with district curriculum standards."

So, what do you think? Does And Tango Makes Three promote homosexuality? Does it inflict upon religious views in school districts or communities? 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/and-tango-makes-three

A Site To See

This website, http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/banned-books.html, gives a great synopsis of books that have been banned and why they have been banned, giving you a chance as a reader to explore and decide for yourself whether or not you believed they should be banned and if they were banned for fair  reasons.

Some of the books included are Moll Flanders, Frankenstein, Black Beauty, certain Shakespeare stories and some fairy tales that we all know and love. Please read on to find out more and become informed on banned books!

Debate: which side are you on?

Upon researching banned and challenged books, 3Teachers1Blog has found two websites that speak out on both sides of the debate: 1. "Freedom to Read Statement" and 2. "Parents Against Bad Books In Schools."

 Both of these websites provide information regarding banned and challenged books, and why they believe theirs is correct. Our job isn't to tell you which side is better; we want you to decide for yourselves.

Check 'em out here:

ALA: Freedom to Read Statement
http://www.ala.org/offices/oif/statementspols/ftrstatement/freedomreadstatement

Parents Against Bad Books in Schools: Home page
http://www.pabbis.com/

So... What do you think?

Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

Speak 

Laurie Halse Anderson 

Melinda Sordino busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops. Now her old friends won’t talk to her, and people she doesn’t even know hate her from a distance. The safest place to be is alone, inside her own head. But even that’s not safe. Because there’s something she’s trying not to think about, something about the night of the party that, if she let it in, would blow her carefully constructed disguise to smithereens. And then she would have to speak the truth. This extraordinary first novel has captured the imaginations of teenagers and adults across the country. 

For some time Speak flew under the radar until 2010 when it was challenged in Republic, Mo school by Dr. Scroggins. Speak was challenged in Republic, MO because it is 'soft pornography' and glorifies drinking, cursing and premarital sex. Other people including the author believe that this book prepares children for the real world, shows victims that they should share their experiences and that they shouldn't be embarrassed about what happened to them. Overall it also lets young adults know that rapes do happen and how to hand them if they or someone they know are caught in that situation. This books has a difficult content for adults and young adults to read but it is a topic that does occur and this novel is beautifully written example of how to talk about it. 

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Banned Since Published

The banning of books has been going on for centuries. Huckleberry Finn has been the most frequently challenged and banned book in America since 1885. What is the big controversy? I can remember reading this book in High School and not really thinking too much about it. My teacher introduced the book to all of us and made sure we understood why the book can be offensive to certain people. She explained that she held us responsible for being mature and handling the material as we should. Since she did this, she held us accountable and there were not any issues because we did not want to let her down. 


Huck Finn was first banned for being incompetent and the characters not being strong role models. The most common reasons for being banned today is because people say that it condones and promotes racism. The word "nigger" is used 219 different times. As that might be a red flag if you know that fact without reading the book, one student speaks out about this situation: 

“The novel is a snapshot into antebellum America. It embodies the spirit of the South and portrays it as most saw it; be it racist or not. When the novel is viewed as a whole, it is one of the greatest pieces of American literature. The novel is, in short, appropriate for the classroom setting, and should continue to be taught in the public school system.”

There can be multiple opinions that come along with Huckleberry Finn and if it should be banned or not. I encourage you to not just look what people are saying about the book and actually pick it up and read it yourself - forming your own opinion! 

Banned and Challenged Books

   3Teachers1Blog is a blog from three future English teachers working to inform the public about banned and challenged books. Banned and challenged books often go "under the radar" in education. For middle school and secondary classrooms, some of our adolescents favorite reads are starting to become challenged- many for reasons that you wouldn't believe. Please follow our blog for general posts regarding this pertinent topic in education!

  What's the difference between banned and challenged books? A challenged book is an attempt to remove or limit materials based on the objections of a particular person or group. A banning of a book is the actual removal of those materials- meaning the challenge was successful. Challenges are often an attempt to remove material from a school's curriculum or library, and thus restricting future access by students and others. However, most challenges are unsuccessful and materials typically remain in a school's library or curriculum. 

 Why are books challenged in schools? Books are usually challenged in schools with the best of intentions - to protect others, frequently children, from difficult, or harmful, ideas and information. There are three main reasons cited for challenging materials: 1. sexually explicit material, 2. offensive language, and 3. unsuited to any group. 

 Popular banned books of the 20th Century: some of these books are frequent flyers on the banned books list, but others may be to your surprise. Coming out at number one this year is The Hunger Games series... Why? Some major concerns regarding The Hunger Games is that it encourages an "anti-family" lifestyle, while also being cited as "anti-ethnic" and "occult/satanic." One of the most popular banned books is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn one of our fellow bloggers is writing an entire post dedicated to Huck and his crew. Some reasons being is for its "coarse language"- leaving it the most frequented banned book since 1885. The Harry Potter series also made the cut (we were just as shocked as you). Why? Some parents believe that the books are promoting "witchcraft", "violence" and "devil worship." To Kill a Mockingbird was another popular one during the 20th-Century; some call it degrading, profane and racist, while also claiming that it promotes "white supremacy." And then there's The Catcher in the Rye; some think it has unnecessary and vulgar language, sexual scenes, and problems concerning moral issues.

 Although these are only five of the most popular banned books of the 20th-Century, the list still goes on. As stated from AdultLearn, "From the beginning of the written word, books have had the capacity to enlighten, to instruct, to entertain and to offend, sometimes all within the same text. Books are frequently banned, generally on a local level affecting only local or school libraries. Occasionally, a government will step in to ban a book. It is not illegal to read banned books, the rulings just make them more difficult to find. Booksellers are sometimes guilty of banning books as well. They cave in response to pressure from customers and perceived threats from consumer groups and will remove books from their shelves. Public outrage is a powerful tool, though seldom wisely wielded." 

 Please continue to check back for future posts regarding banned and challenged books. We appreciate any feedback, questions or concerns you may have.

Thank you!