books

Today I drove up to the Montague Bookmill, one of my three favorite bookstores in the world. It's a great used bookstore in a 1842 gristmill on the bank of the Sawmill River. The tagline of the store is "books you don't need in a place you can't find" and yes, I did get lost on the way, but only because I was coming from a different direction than usual. It's a beautiful old building with lots of interesting books and cozy chairs in the sun and big old windows with beautiful views and creaky floors. Also there is a wonderful record store and there is good coffee and food. All it needs is some cats hanging around, and then it would be really be perfection.

There are two restaurants there; I've never eaten at the Night Kitchen but it is supposed to be amazing (and has a wonderful name!). One of these days I'll get there. I've had lunch a few times at the Lady Killigrew Cafe and it's quite delicious. They have great coffee. Here the view from the table where I ate lunch (outside, because it was unseasonable 70 degrees today!):

There have been lots of changes around here lately, most of which I won't get into in the interests of keeping my private life off the internet, but one major change is that I now have a CAR. I have never in my whole life had a car before. Here's my new car:

I kinda like it!

New bookcase, originally uploaded by zannect.

Dave built the most awesome bookcase ever. I finally have space to hold all my books (well, except for my public health books, children's books, and a selection of my non-fiction, which are in another bookcase), plus room to grow. It's wonderful to have a custom-built bookcase that fits perfectly in the corner, and it's almost as wonderful to finally have finished unpacking! It looks even better when you're not seeing the flash reflection, but you get the idea.

Also, the cats like it.

This week I'm guestblogging over at No Apathy Allowed while Mandi is traveling. Check it out!

It's National Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read.

According to the American Library Association, here are the top 10 banned books in 2007 (annotated by me):

1. And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell
Reasons: Anti-Ethnic, Sexism, Homosexuality, Anti-Family, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group
I've read this and it is one of the cutest children's stories EVER. What's not to love about penguins in love who want a baby?

2. The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Violence
I read this many years ago, probably in sixth grade or so--I'm surprised it's still on the list.

3. Olive’s Ocean, by Kevin Henkes
Reasons: Sexually Explicit and Offensive Language
I haven't read this one, but it sounds really good.

4. The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman
Reasons: Religious Viewpoint
This is a fantastic series...really interesting world, complex characters, strong female characters, good writing.

5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
Reasons: Racism
I read this years ago, as well. It's such a part of our culture--a friend just made a joke about painting a fence that referenced this book last weekend--I'm not sure how you could ban it.

6. The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language,
Another book I read many years ago; I'm ashamed to admit I don't remember it, so I'll have to add it to my library request list.

7. TTYL, by Lauren Myracle
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group
I haven't read this, but something tells me I'm not quite the right age for it.

8. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
Reasons: Sexually Explicit
I remember being amazed by this, but it's another one I need to re-read.

9. It’s Perfectly Normal, by Robie Harris
Reasons: Sex Education, Sexually Explicit
I haven't read this, but given my professional field, I probably don't need to.

10. The Perks of Being A Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group
I haven't read this, but I like the title...maybe it'll be another library book.

I took a look through the list of top-ten banned books since 1991, and I've read and love many of them. As an avid reader, I know I first grappled with many serious issues through books...I can't understand why parents would prefer their child to learn about sex by, say, having it, or reality tv, instead of reading Judy Blume? I mean, they do know that pretending it doesn't exist doesn't actually work, right? Oh wait...no, that's why we still have abstinence-only education. Anyways, I don't have a week to write about all the books I love on the banned books list, but one of these days I'm going through it, or perhaps the Radcliffe top 100 list, and read all the ones I haven't yet.

Banned Books Week always makes me think of another favorite, Farenheit 451, which may be at the root of my love for dystopian novels.