Happy Halloween and National Book Month Bookworms!

Happy Halloween my fellow bookworms!

I hope that wherever you are, you are having fun and are safe, enjoying the holiday and all it has to offer. 

Photo by Kaboompics.com from Pexels

I am at that point in school where I am almost finished! I hope to go back to book reviews soon. :)

Happy National Book Month, too! October is the month that promotes the importance of reading, writing, and literature - although you probably celebrate this all year long, anyway!

In the meantime, I would like to share some book news with you:

• LibraryTok is a community of librarian creators who utilize the social media platform in order to show behind the scenes of what happens at the library. How cool is that?! 

• Banned Books week has passed in September, but October 19th was Freedom to Read Day of Action. It was one more day to tell our local government to stop censorship and to help back libraries all over the United States. 
• Even though that day has passed, as well, you can still celebrate the joy of reading in many other ways! Check out these really cool nail artists, as seen on the nail polish newsletter from Holo Taco, and their book nail art!



(c) Holo Taco & @silieol_nails, 2024



(c) Holo Taco & @nailswithmemaw, 2024



(c) Holo Taco & @0716shivi, 2024

• Other ways you can help your local libraries include:
• Get a library card 
• And use it!
• Talk to your friends and family
• Use your library! 
• There are so many events to attend and items to check out, go see what is new!
• Join your Friends of the Library Organization 
• A non-profit organization that helps your local library with book sales and funding programs!
• Donate to your local library
• Volunteer at your local library
• a.k.a. donate your time!
• Use social media to spread awareness of book banning and censorship, in addition to talking about how great your library is!

• Some cool, new adaptations are in the works, including:
• Meg Cabot's Princess Diaries will get a third movie
• A Netflix Pride and Prejudice series
• Frieda McFadden's The Housemaid will have a movie adaptation
• Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart will have a television adaptation
• Rebecca F. Kuang's Yellowface has been optioned for a series adaptation

• Pizza Hut gave out 1 million free pizzas to readers to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Book It! Program. I loved this program as a child! I am so happy that it continues to bring happiness to other children (and free pizza, too)!

• With the U.S. election day on the horizon, you may feel overwhelmed. A great escape is to look for geocaches! Geocaching is an outdoor treasure hunt that uses a GPS or app on your phone to find hidden containers called "geocaches." You can even hide one yourself! Check out this nifty blog post by Cache Advance to see how geocaching can help you find a little relief from everyday stress. 

That is all I have for now. This year has gone by very quickly and busily. What is something you look forward to next month? I look forward to new movies and the beautiful fall weather.

Until next time bookworms! Happy Reading!

Freed Between the Lines! (Banned Books Week, Sept 22nd - Sept 28th)

Hi my fellow bookworms,

This month marks the annual Banned Books Week, beginning on Sunday, September 22, 2024 through Saturday, September 28, 2024. The theme this year, as stated by the American Library Association ("ALA"), is Freed Between the Lines. What a great way to promote the freedom to read!

A few statistics, from the ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom ("OIF") to breakdown this past year's challenges on banned books (and it has been a year!):

• Challenges of unique titles surged 65% in 2023, compared to 2022

• This past year had the highest level of challenges ever recorded by the ALA

(c) ALA, 2024

• OIF documented 4,240 unique book titles for censorship
  
  
• There were 1,247 demands to censor library books, materials, and resources in 2023
• Groups and individuals demanding the censorship of multiple titles, often dozens to hundreds at a time, started this uptick in challenged materials

• Public libraries were targeted more, in addition to school libraries, in 2023 than previous years

• Titles tagged for censorship at public libraries increased by 92% in 2023, accounting for approximately 46% of all book challenges in 2023

• 76% of items challenged were books and graphic novels, 5% displays, 4% access (bomb threats, library closures), 4% hate crimes (vandalism, theft of materials representing marginalized groups), 3% programs, 2% films, and 6% other

• School libraries saw an 11% increase in challenged materials, compared to 2022

• In total, 54% of censorship attacks attack public libraries, 30% attack school libraries, 5% schools, and 2% higher education/other

• 47% of the censorship attempts targeted LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals

• The highest groups initiating censorship attempts have been patrons, or those who visit the library, with 28% of censorship attempts, followed by 24% parents, and 21% pressure groups

• Attempts to censor more than 100 titles were recorded in the following 17 U.S. states:
• Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin

(c) ALA, 2024

How does ALA compile its data? Through book challenge reports filed by library professionals throughout the United States, in addition to news stories. This doesn't cover all the data required for a full picture, though, as some reports never make it to ALA, so the above is

just a snapshot of the censorship that occurred over the previous year. 

So, what is a challenge? ALA states that 

"A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict access to materials or services based upon the objections of a person or group. A challenge to a title may result in access to it being retained, restricted, or withdrawn entirely" (n.d.). 

Previous book challenges have resulted in a book intended for a younger audience being removed from that section and placed in an older section of the library, requiring a parent's permission, being given a rating warning, or even requiring an older age to check the book out. These challenges are an attempt to remove materials from the public view, removing the public's ability to access them, their views, their ideas, their voices. (I'm imagining Ariel and Ursula as I write this.)

A formal challenge to a book means the start of a long process in which everyone involved with the library becomes involved, typically with the policy of the library and the library board who ultimately decides if the book meets the library's mission and criteria set in it's policy. ALA also states that

"A book is banned when it is entirely removed from a collection in response to a formal or informal challenge. Any reduction in access to library materials based on an individual or group's believe that they are harmful or offensive is an act of censorship" (n.d.). 

Here are the Top Ten Books that were challenged in 2023, along with their reasons why (You may see some repeat offenders from 2022):

(c) ALA, 2024

How can you help? 

• Check out the website Unite Against Book Bans, they have lots of ways to participate against censorship, as well as free tools to help you succeed in doing so.
• VOTE! This is an election year, we must make sure our votes count, so no more challenges or censorship continues - let's bring the above statistics back down!
• Read challenged books. Understand why they were challenged. Make your own decisions. Check out book resumes hosted on Unite Against Book Bans, if you do not have time to read all of them at the moment. 
• Attend your local library board and school board meetings. Make YOUR voice heard!
• Visit your library! If you don't have a library card yet, get one - they're free! You can check so many more things out than just books, including music, audiobooks, movies, and sometimes, even technology (e.g., sewing machines or VHS to DVD converters)!
  
• Create your own Little Free Library and offer challenged books for those in your community to read.
• Read the ALA's Intellectual Freedom Blog to stay up-to-date on all things banned books related.
• Alert ALA of any book ban attempts in your community through the OIF office.
• Sign on the Freedom to Read Statement, and state your support in the belief of the freedom to read!

I support everyone's right to read. Until next time, I hope you "Freed Between the Lines!" 

Happy reading (banned books)! :)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

References

ALA. (n.d.). Book ban data. https://www.ala.org/bbooks/book-ban-data

United Against Book Bans. (n.d.). Get involved. https://uniteagainstbookbans.org/get-involved/