Mary, thank you for republishing Angie's fine essay. With so much occurring daily, it is easy to forget that book bans and censorship are among the most important acts to prevent. PEN America, whose newsletter I receive, documented more than 10,000 book bans of more than 4,000 unique titles in 2023-2024. Earlier this month, books about cats and dogs were placed on the lists of banned books! We should all be outraged. What is especially galling is that the books being removed from library shelves haven't even been read by their censors. I always want to ask the censors who gave them the right to deny others of their right to read, to make discoveries, to learn about the world's wonders. Already we know Americans are abandoning reading; just a few days ago, the Washington Post ran a story indicating that only 16% of Americans age 15+ read for leisure, down from 40% in 2003. We ban books and we abandon reading at our peril.
Thank you Angie for calling out the fear that those who ban books have of children gaining knowledge and becoming well informed citizens. It’s a sorry state of affairs. I love going to our library and checking out stacks of books.
Wonderful read! I particularly resonated with “The best books are transformative.” Yes they are! And thought provoking too, but I’m still not a vampire!
And shoutout to Michigan! I live in the lower peninsula. One of my favorite parts to visit is the Keweenaw.
Thank you for this post, Angie. It brought back memories of walking to the library at age six and leaving with a stack of books. Librarians everywhere are again on the front lines. I love the idea of reading to adults, especially in position of power. I wish adult story hour could be widely implemented.
Mary, thank you for republishing Angie's fine essay. With so much occurring daily, it is easy to forget that book bans and censorship are among the most important acts to prevent. PEN America, whose newsletter I receive, documented more than 10,000 book bans of more than 4,000 unique titles in 2023-2024. Earlier this month, books about cats and dogs were placed on the lists of banned books! We should all be outraged. What is especially galling is that the books being removed from library shelves haven't even been read by their censors. I always want to ask the censors who gave them the right to deny others of their right to read, to make discoveries, to learn about the world's wonders. Already we know Americans are abandoning reading; just a few days ago, the Washington Post ran a story indicating that only 16% of Americans age 15+ read for leisure, down from 40% in 2003. We ban books and we abandon reading at our peril.
I’ll say. Wow, 10,000 book bans!
For those interested in PEN America's findings and its suggestions for taking action, start here:
https://pen.org/banned-books-list-2025/
Thank you Angie for calling out the fear that those who ban books have of children gaining knowledge and becoming well informed citizens. It’s a sorry state of affairs. I love going to our library and checking out stacks of books.
Wonderful read! I particularly resonated with “The best books are transformative.” Yes they are! And thought provoking too, but I’m still not a vampire!
And shoutout to Michigan! I live in the lower peninsula. One of my favorite parts to visit is the Keweenaw.
Thank you for this post, Angie. It brought back memories of walking to the library at age six and leaving with a stack of books. Librarians everywhere are again on the front lines. I love the idea of reading to adults, especially in position of power. I wish adult story hour could be widely implemented.
Amen!!