Day 2 of Banned Books Week features two books that bring some harsh issues to light regarding suicide and child abuse.
It’s Banned Books Week, which is an event that brings awareness of the freedom to read. Most bans were because of complaints or outcries from parents and/or some educators, feeling that some of the books were unsuitable for teens or pre-teens.
For each day of Banned Books Week, we’ll be presenting two young adult books that are/have been banned from schools or communities due to its contents – or at the very least, challenged.
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
Why it was banned: drugs/alcohol/smoking, sexually explicit, suicide, and unsuited for age group
Why it should be read: We actually need more books like this one: Books that explain how your everyday actions, even the ones you don’t dwell upon, can have a devastating effect on others. It can be a tough, emotional read, but it’s thought-provoking.
Hannah Baker ended her life for a lot of reasons– 13 of which she names on tape for Clay. She felt deeply and was very affected by those around her. The book never excuses or encourages her suicide, but it does a marvelous job helping teens understand how their words and actions affect others in an age of public shaming and peer pressure.
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Lessons from a Dead Girl by Jo Knowles
Why it was banned: sexuality, underage drinking, same sex romance
Why it should be read: There are not a lot of books out there that delve into child abuse from a child’s peer, but this one does, and does so very realistically.
Child abuse is already a hard subject matter to write or read about. But it’s easy to find fault with the adult when it comes to an adult abusing a child. But what about when a child abuses another child? The confusion and guilt that’s felt by the abused seems at quite a different level. This book hits directly on that issue and there are people out there that relate to this story very much.
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