'The Hunger Games' ignites the ALA's list of most challenged books
By Stephan Lee, EW.com
(EW.com) - "The Hunger Games" movie may not have had trouble earning a PG-13 rating, but many parents and educators are wondering whether the best-selling book trilogy belongs on library shelves.
The American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom released its annual list of most frequently challenged books of 2011 yesterday, and the increased popularity of Suzanne Collins' dystopian saga - in large part fueled by buzz surrounding the blockbuster film - drove the books higher on the list. In 2010, only the first novel cracked the top ten at number five. In 2011, all three books occupy the number three position, and the complaints have grown more varied: "anti-ethnic; anti-family; insensitivity; offensive language; occult/satanic; violence."
The ALA keeps track of challenges filed and counted 327 reported attempts to restrict or remove books from schools and libraries in 2011. The association defines a challenge as "a formal, written complaint filed with a library or school requesting that a book or other material be restricted or removed because of its content or appropriateness."
FULL STORY
Related: Student News
CNN Student News is ten minutes of commercial-free, cost free news for middle and high school classrooms. It is available on line on our website, as a free downloadable podcast on iTunes and on HLN at 4:00 a.m. ET weekdays during the school year. Go to www.CNNStudentNews.com@CNNSchools on Twitter
Favorite Videos
obviously like your web site however you need to take a look at the spelling on quite a few of your posts. Several of them are rife with spelling issues and I in finding it very troublesome to tell the truth on the other hand I'll surely come back again.
Thanks for every other magnificent post. The place else may anyone get that kind of information in such a perfect means of writing? I've a presentation subsequent week, and I am on the look for such information.
Keep in mind the most frequently challenged and banned books for over a decade was the 'Scary Stories To Tell In the Dark' series due to mentioning 'witchcraft, murder, cannibalism, and occult themes' in a children's book.
The ALA also banned To Kill a Mockingbird from a lot of public schools because it contains 'excessive use of racial slurs'.
With respect, the ALA has never banned a book – it only tried to keep track of those who would do so. I don't think the ALA tracks books which are banned or removed from school libraries but someone should. After all, we don't want our soon-to-be-adult students in local high schools to be exposed to books like "Mockingbird", or authors like Mark Twain (who was banned from some schools because of the use of the "n-word" in "Huckleberry Finn"). We must build barricades wherever we can to prevent exposure to anything other than what we consider "right" because that might lead us down the road to open-mindedness!
Useful info. Fortunate me I found your website unintentionally, and I am shocked why this twist of fate didn't happened in advance! I bookmarked it.
My associate and I believe this book should never be in a library.
It is is a new book and the library should only be for classic books
and older types of media that no longer sell in stores.
The free socialistic library system is an affront to capitalism.
Booksellers are already in a weak market afflicted by internet piracy.
We also feel you cannot truly enjoy a book without a $3.55 starbucks vanilla latte.
Sincerely,
Charles Montgomery Barnes and C. Clifford Noble
Well thank you for deciding for the rest of the American public and also your customers. We really appreciate you making the decision of what accounts for "classic" You are aware that there has always been science fiction books, horror book, etc. Have you ever been in a library? guess what they have "made up stuff" everywhere! If you get rid of Hunger Games you have to get rid of everything else besides the scholarly research. Get real.
Good choice of names. I like the Simpsons reference
The whole point of libraries is that they aren't censored, if you start to censor libraries then they will start to loose their value
There's nothing in Hunger Games that is not also in the Bible.
Helpful information. Lucky me I found your web site by chance, and I am shocked why this twist of fate didn't happened earlier! I bookmarked it.
I have read all three of the books in Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games Trilogy. My 11 yo and even my 9 yo twins have read them as well. These are really good books. They do depict some themes that should be discussed with an adult/parent/teacher, but otherwise are good reads that keep kids engaged in the story and the characters. I had my kids look up the term 'dystopia' and we discussed the various ways societies are configured. We have also discussed children, their role in society, child labor, labor laws, American History, violence- in general and against girls/women and children, gluttony, excess, class and caste, rebellion and revolution, just to name a few topics. These books can help open up some very interesting and yes, uncomfortable topics for students and help them become better and deeper thinkers.
what?????????
this book is amazing!!!!!!!
why would anyone want to restrict it???????
some people are too touchy!!!!!!!!!!
the people use big word and made a big mistake
It's in reality a nice and helpful piece of information. I'm happy that you just shared this helpful information with us. Please stay us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.
Normally I don't read post on blogs, but I wish to say that this write-up very compelled me to take a look at and do so! Your writing taste has been amazed me. Thanks, quite nice article.
Many if not all of these complainers never read the books, they just read an ultra conservative website and marched off in step, the good little drones they surely are.
Odd, I'm told I'm ultra-conservative. Yet these books are on my buy and read list. So much for your bigoted assumption of drones!
Odd, I'm told I'm ultra-conservative. Yet these books are on my buy and read list. So much for your bigoted assumption of drones!
so you haven't actually read them?
"anti-ethnic; anti-family; insensitivity; offensive language; occult/satanic; violence." Didn't see any of that in the books.