I was searching my shelves for old copies of Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants series and couldn’t find any. Evidently, in some crazed clear-out, I must have gotten rid of them. When my daughter was in 4th grade, these books were all the rage (I suspect they still are), and we had several.

I’ve just learned that Pilkey’s series is at the top of ALA’s 2012 list of banned/challenged books. Weird. Now that I want to read one in honor of Banned Books Week, I’ll have to visit a library.

Here’s Pilkey’s response to his status on ALA’s list, via YouTube:

Little House on the Prairie is here!

The New York Public Library’s recent exhibit on the history of children’s literature dedicated an alcove to banned books, with a six-foot tall stack of titles. I take courage in realizing that the perpetual challenges and bans are evidence of the power of the written word. (It’s also a bit depressing to realize that the film world doesn’t have an equivalent Banned Movies Week — evidently they can afford to be lackadaisical about what the good people of Middle America think of them.)

Read a Banned or Challenged Book. Let the world know that you’re not afraid of words.