It is pretty much self-promotion that gets libraries posting on blogs, and our “Book of the Day” can be seen as self-promotion for our collection. This week’s book goes beyond that to an overall Library Mission promotion. Banned Books: 2007 resource book, put together by Robert P. Doyle, highlights battles libraries have had to defend over time. The pattern is often this:
- User finds a book offensive.
- User rallies community members.
- Librarian defends the book.
- User remains outraged.
- Book gets taken off shelf.
- User celebrates, and immediately forgets the problem.
- 2 months later, the book is back on the shelf.
- No one cares.
But what is interesting about this is the reason a lot of these books have been put away, and the make-up of the communities that ban them. The information for each known ban is listed.
If you’d like to see it, come down to the Reference Desk, where it is on special display for the time being!
