Still, I’m not surprised after reading your final editor’s letter. I was so burned out after two and a half years of being an editor at two different journals, in a writing group, and in graduate school–not to mention my real life–that I slowly had to disengage from each position.

Lauren, I’m glad you have your nights and weekends back for yourself. And I hope you are well. Perhaps one day our paths will cross in real life : )

I doubt Banned Books Week would need to take place on such a large scale if it was just the “occasional troubled parent” reacting. My question to you would be what would make a book “wrong” in your view? Do you think we would agree on a book being wrong? If not, then whose view would prevail? Should mine be discounted because I am not a parent, perhaps?

I understand your feelings about the book you mentioned “taking a hammer” to your personal faith. It’s disturbing when a book does that, yet I firmly believe that what is important to us–like your faith is to you–can only be stronger or at least more assured if you are willing to look and consider challenges to it. I believe that knowledge works to our ultimate advantage, not ignorance. If we choose to surround ourselves with only things that reinforce what we already believe, do we deprive ourselves of a chance to learn? I think BBW offers us the opportunity to recognize this.

You do put forth a valid question. But my feelings about “all the things we really don’t think should be read by anyone” are in strong opposition to yours. Should I not have read Mein Kampf? I learned a lot from doing that, but never once was my belief in how awful Hitler’s philosophy was changed or shaken. Rather, I feel I now have a more solid foundation for my beliefs. And that, I think, is why reading things that we don’t necessarily agree with is important. They are opportunities to learn, to expand, to challenge, to grow. I hope I never see a day when BBW dies out because we feel have learned all we need to know.

Thanks so much for writing and for reading BiblioBuffet.

I was talking after church today (yeah I go to church) and someone mentioned a problem book to me, which I had to come home and look up the story on.

It’s about a girl that finds out her mother had an affair and she;s actually a demon. That wasn’t why people were complaining though. The main character and her mentor both judge Christianity really harshly, saying it’s only made up, that god and Jesus are analogous to imaginary friends and show Christians as being directly or indirectly, responsible for most of the bad things in the world.

The book isn’t even out yet, but people can get copies from the publishing company for review and their going around the Internet.

The thing it, this book, Keeley Thomson: Demon Girl really takes a hammer to my personal faith and could possibly help lead to a hostile environment latter. Should people be allowed to read that?

I’m torn, but I think it;s a valid question. To often we just assume that “reading is good” but we don’t take the time to consider all the things we really don’t think should be read by anyone.

And I am happy to say that my credit union takes no prisoners. They will resolve this. I suspect the bank manager will be a bit more diligent about his responsibilities when this is over.