“Freedom to Read” week begins Saturday


The staff of H. Leslie Perry Memorial Library is encouraging local residents to join them in their observance of “Freedom to Read Week”, which will begin Saturday Sept. 29 th and last through Oct. 6.

Perry Library’s local Freedom to Read Week runs concurrent with the American Library Association’s Banned Books Week. First observed by the ALA in 1982, Banned Books Week is designed to encourage Americans to exercise their rights to hold their own beliefs and to have unrestricted access to information and ideas that may express unpopular viewpoints.

Perry Library will hold special activities in observance of Freedom to Read Week, including a game of banned books bingo on Tuesday evening at 6:30 p.m. for youths ages nine to 18. The banned books bingo game is sponsored by the Reading Bunch, a youth reading group which meets at Perry every first and third Tuesday.

There will also be displays at the library for those who wish to learn about what titles have been challenged or banned in certain locations and why. Additional activities are also planned; visit the library or contact the staff at 252.438.3316 for further details.

Challenging popular book titles remains a common practice today. In 2006, the most commonly challenged book was, “And Tango Makes Three”, a fiction work by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell about two male penguins who parent an egg from mixed-sex penguin couple. Other frequently challenged or banned titles include Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”, J.D. Salinger’s “Catcher in the Rye” and J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” series.

To read more about the ALA’s dedication to intellectual freedom, visit its Office of Intellectual Freedom website.