MARYSVILLE — Librarians in Snohomish County and across the country are encouraging readers to reach for forbidden books.
Banned Book Week begins Saturday.
“Banned book week is important because when someone tries to tell me what I can and can’t read, that infringes on my freedom,” said Marysville children’s librarian Kathy Smargiassi.
Displays of books that people frequently try to get libraries to ban are currently featured in libraries throughout Snohomish County.
Here are Smargiassi’s thoughts on some of the books included in the Marysville display:
“And Tango Makes Three,” by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell. “It’s a book about penguins. It’s two male penguins that raise an egg together. I think we should keep it because it’s a really heartwarming story about two penguins who adopt an egg. Even though they might not be a traditional family, they love this egg.”
“The Chocolate War,” by Robert Cormier. “I read it when I was in library school. I didn’t particularly like it because there’s no strong adult guiding presence in the book. It’s kind of like ‘Lord of the Flies.’ The kids kind of go off and things get really out of hand — and that’s why people object to it, because teenagers get out of hand and there’s violence in there. But on the other hand, there are some teenagers who are really, really angry at the world and it touches them.”
“The Golden Compass,” by Philip Pullman. “The author is an atheist. If you read the book, it’s kind of anti-religion, but it’s also a really good fantasy and if you really look at the book, it’s more anti-religion than it is anti-God.”
“The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” by Mark Twain. “It’s on the list for racism, but of course if you actually read the book, Huckleberry Finn is the one who treats Jim as a person, even though society tells him he’s being (bad) for treating him like a person. And Mark Twain actually writes him as an actual person — not just as a stereotype, so I don’t agree with the charge.”
“The Color Purple,” by Alice Walker. “The reasons (it’s on the list) are homosexuality, (being) sexually explicit and offensive language, but on the other hand it really speaks to someone’s experience. You get to think about, ‘Gee. Were things really like this for this certain segment in this certain population?’ It gets you talking about racism. … With these kinds of books, there are more people who can read books and recognize themselves in the literature.”
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