Banned Books Week (September 22-28, 2019) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Typically held during the last week of September, it spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. It brings together the entire book community - librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types - in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.

The books featured during Banned Books Week have all been targeted for removal or restriction in libraries and schools. By focusing on efforts across the country to remove or restrict access to books, Banned Books Week draws national attention to the harms of censorship.

Banned Books Week has been shining a light on censorship since it was founded in 1982, and the fight for free expression is as urgent as ever. In recent years, the attacks on the right to read have become bolder, as legislatures have introduced bills that would eliminate crucial safeguards for the right to read books that some people find offensive.

Blaine County Library will have a selection of banned books on the display table throughout the month of September. Free People Reading Freely Book Club will meet Monday September 23rd at 7:00 p.m. Donna Miller will be our facilitator again this year. To start we will be reading two of Jamie Ford's books. Participants will have the choice of reading "The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet" or "Love and Other Consolation Prizes." Some participants may choose to read both. There is plenty to discuss in both books. Ford's book "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet" is required reading in some English and History classes and has been challenged in several school districts, making it a perfect choice for our book club. Stop in and pick up a copy anytime or come to the book club and get a copy then.

Don't let censors take books out of our hands! Celebrate free expression during Banned Books Week!