Mocha Girls Read members it’s that time to pick a new book for the month of September. The theme for September’s book nominations will be…Banned Book. (A Book that has been or is currently on the banned or challenged book list.) In support of banned book week, we will be reading a book that has been banned or challenged. Banned Books Week is the national book community’s annual celebration of the freedom to read. Hundreds of libraries and bookstores around the country draw attention to the problem of censorship by mounting displays of challenged books and hosting a variety of events. The 2016 celebration will be held September 25 – October 1. (More about Banned Book Week)
*Note: If you are nominating a book in a series then only book 1 is allowed. And all nominations should be published in e-book and physical form.*
Nominations are from 8/8/16 – 8/14/16
For selecting our book of the month Mocha Girls Read uses a democratic system for monthly selections. What do I need to do? In the comments section below, tell us what you want to read next (author and title). How many books can I nominate? Just pick 1 title off your TBR (to be read) list. Then what? We will put the list of nominations up for everyone to vote on. Once the voting is over, the winner will be selected as the book for August. What if there is a tie? We will put the two books to a head to head competition. The two books will be re-posted and everyone will be able to vote again but only in a 48 hour window of time. When do the nominations start and end? The nominations start today and will close on August 14, 2016 at 11:00pm. Voting will start the next day.
Let us know what you want to read next in the comment section below. If you need some suggestions check out the titles below. Click the book covers to read a synopsis and the reviews of the books.
The top ten most frequently challenged books of 2015 are:
- Looking for Alaska
, by John Green
Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, and unsuited for age group. - Fifty Shades of Grey
, by E. L. James
Reasons: Sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, and other (“poorly written,” “concerns that a group of teenagers will want to try it”). - I Am Jazz
, by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings
Reasons: Inaccurate, homosexuality, sex education, religious viewpoint, and unsuited for age group. - Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out
, by Susan Kuklin
Reasons: Anti-family, offensive language, homosexuality, sex education, political viewpoint, religious viewpoint, unsuited for age group, and other (“wants to remove from collection to ward off complaints”). - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
, by Mark Haddon
Reasons: Offensive language, religious viewpoint, unsuited for age group, and other (“profanity and atheism”). - The Holy Bible
Reasons: Religious viewpoint. - Fun Home, by Alison Bechdel
Reasons: Violence and other (“graphic images”). - Habibi, by Craig Thompson
Reasons: Nudity, sexually explicit, and unsuited for age group. - Nasreen’s Secret School
: A True Story from Afghanistan, by Jeanette Winter
Reasons: Religious viewpoint, unsuited to age group, and violence. - Two Boys Kissing, by David Levithan
Reasons: Homosexuality and other (“condones public displays of affection”).
Here is a link to the list of books on the banned or challenged list.
Mocha Girl Alysia