Think censorship in publishing is a thing of the past? Think again. From Sherman Alexie‘s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian to The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, award-winning titles are not making it into the hands of young readers after being banned by school boards.
To bring awareness to the problem, the Association of American Publishers (AAP) and its member companies are hosting the 33rd annual Banned Books Week next week (Sept. 27 – Oct. 3).
“Protecting the right of young people to read a wide variety of books is an integral part of AAP’s work in support of free expression,” stated Judith Platt, AAP’s Director of Free Expression Advocacy and chair of the Banned Books Week National Committee. “By focusing on Young Adult books we are reaffirming our commitment to keeping books that are challenging, entertaining and relevant to their lives freely available to them in school and public libraries and on classroom reading lists.”
The weeklong event is put together in order to support challenged books in schools and libraries. It includes author appearances,free giveaways in libraries, schools and bookstores, as well as online discussions. Readers are also encouraged to share photos of themselves reading banned books on social media with the hashtag #BannedBooksWeek.