It’s that time of year when our imaginations turn to images of ghosts and goblins, and our mouths water at thoughts of candy apples and chocolate. Regardless of the many religious and cultural references that influenced the modern Halloween tradition, it’s a beloved and fun-filled holiday for adults and...
“Brave New World” was criticized when first published in 1932 for having a weak plot and characterization. “Nothing can bring it alive,” one review quoted; but it is now considered a classic. In 1999, the Modern Libraryranked “Brave New World” fifth on its list of the 100 best English-language...
Censorship has a variety of points along its dark spectrum- from the outright removal of books to mere challenges; both fiction and non-fiction works are frequent targets of the flames of ignorance for various reasons. Sometimes a book comes along that, by virtue of being so controversial, causes lines...
It’s October- a time for ghosts, goblins, and other things that go bump in the night. So what better way to get into the Halloween spirit than by showcasing the Children/Young Adult series “Goosebumps” by R.L. (Robert Lawrence) Stine. Before being knocked out of first place by the story...
About a month or so ago I was contacted by the editor of a paranormal magazine and asked to do an interview about myself and my paranormal research group. The questions and topics covered were really enjoyable to answer and included comments from all members of the Deep Forest...
I am humbled and honored by all of the positive reactions across the country and around the world for my Banned Books Awareness and Reading for Knowledge series about censorship. The comments and the discussions are fun and informative and nothing short of amazing. I’ve even ruffled a few...
Freedom of expression and thought is a fundamental human right, and is so important that it is the first amendment to the United States Constitution, yet there are those who would deny that right because some ideas that are expressed by others are contrary to their personal opinions. The...
Gary Paulsen has written over 200 books in his career. Most of those novels are junior-high-level stories that center on the wilderness and the importance of nature, and use common “coming of age” themes where a character in isolation must use the art of survival as a rite of...
Well wouldn’t you know it? Yet another of America’s legendary Founding Fathers has had their written work banned by the same citizenry that purports to idolize them. Benjamin Franklin’s life story was published in France under the title “Mémoires de la vie privée de Benjamin Franklin”(The Private Life of...
We all grew up with the lyrical children’s books by Theodor Seuss Geisel, otherwise known as the immortal Dr. Seuss. His imaginative characters and trisyllabic meter rhymes gave us bestselling books like Green Eggs and Ham, The Cat in the Hat, and One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue...