Banned Books Week 2012 marks "30 Years of Liberating Literature." Since 1982, the last week of September has celebrated the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. The books featured have been challenged or banned in schools or libraries. These challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view. They seek to restrict the access of others, threatening our freedoms of speech and choice. September 30 - October 6, 2012 is the perfect opportunity for you and your family to discuss our First Amendment rights and the power of literature. If you're ready, willing, but not quite able, take a look at our staff's favorite banned books for inspiration. Thirty titles for thirty years. These and others will be on display to the right of the Circulation Desk all week long.

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Carrie by Stephen King
Deenie by Judy Blume
Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler
Earth's Children series by Jean M. Auel
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
The Giver by Lois Lowry
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
Grendel by John Gardner
Harry Potter series by J.K.. Rowling
His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman
How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus by Barbara Park
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
Pardon Me, You're Stepping on My Eyeball by Paul Zindel
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
A Time to Kill by John Grisham
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle