During the last week of September each year, hundreds of libraries and bookstores around the country draw attention to the problem of censorship by mounting displays of challenged books and hosting a variety of events.
A display of restricted, removed or banned books is now on exhibit at Brevard College’s J.A. Jones Library to commemorate Banned Books Week.
The display includes classic titles such as The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Color Purple by Alice Walker and Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger.
Several more recent titles – Dr. Suess’s The Lorax, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter (series) and Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games (series) – are on exhibit as well. There is also a list of “Frequently Challenged Books of the 21st Century” and “Banned Books That Shaped America” available for review.
Banned Books Week is the only national celebration of the freedom to read. It was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in schools, bookstores and libraries. More than 11,000 books have been challenged since 1982.
Transylvania County residents may check out books from the Brevard College Library for 28 days.
The Brevard College library is open from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday; and 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday.
For more information, contact: Library Director Mike McCabe at 884-8248 or e-mail the library at library@brevard.edu