Naked Lunch, by William S. Burroughs, was originally published in 1959 and is included in Time magazine’s “100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005”. Burroughs stated that the chapters, or “routines” as he calls them- are a collection of loosely-connected vignettes and intended to be read in any...
Written in 1937 by Zora Neale Hurston, “Their Eyes Were Watching God” tells the story of Janie Crawford, a 16-year-old whose grandmother decides to marry her off to a well-respected man in the community. Fellow censored author, Alice Walker, had this to say about the book: “There is no...
I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the power of Banned Books Week than to share something wonderful and deeply touching. In the last several months leading up to this year’s Banned Books Week I have been humbled and honored to read and share comments and letters...
September marks a return to regular classes here in the United States. With the cultural focus on all things scholastic, it is also the time of year when our freedom to read is celebrated by the America Library Association’s Banned Books Week, which will be September 21-27, 2014. Libraries,...
Singapore’s National Library Board has been busy as of late- stopping citizens from reading. Books and comics have been on their hit list because they contain same-sex issues in their content. The organization last week withdrew from libraries the books and Tango Makes Three, which has been covered previously,...
Henry Miller is one of the most important literary figures in American history, but most people don’t even know his name. His was a true underdog story: a creative and challenging author who influenced such literary and pop culture icons as Jack Kerouac, Norman Mailer, Phillip Roth, Paul Theroux,...
It was reported here two years ago (4/30/2012) that Yertle the Turtle was banned as part of a political dispute in British Columbia. Well, the beloved works of Dr. Seuss are once again within the cross-hairs of censors in Canada- this time in Toronto, Ontario. Joining the list of...
Part of growing up in the 20th century was reading the adventures of Tarzan of the Apes, through a series of 24 books by Edgar Rice Burroughs; the novels are considered classic literature by adults, as well. Written between 1912 and 1965, Tarzan has been adapted numerous times for...
Scientologists have kept a book out of American stores for 27-years because it alleges that L. Ron Hubbard was a racist and a fantasist with a penchant for bizarre sexual rituals; but it is finally getting published. Written by British journalist Russell Miller, it was finished the year after...
Published in 1952, East of Eden is often heralded as his most ambitious novel and was originally addressed to Steinbeck’s sons- 6 and 4 at the time- because he wanted to describe Salinas Valley in detail for them through the complex tale of two families. Steinbeck is the author...