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Annual Banned Books Read-in Set for Wednesday

Event Designed to Raise Awareness of Censorship Persons interested in personal freedom with regard to literature are encouraged to reserve a 15-minute time slot in which to read from their favorite banned book Wednesday (Sept. 28), between 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., in Wilmington College’s Watson Library. (PICTURED) Junior Thomas Donoghue reads from Judy Blume’s novel, Forever, during the 2015 Banned Books Read-In. Watson Library and the English Dept. are sponsoring the annual Banned Books Read-In as part of the National Library Association's 34th anniversary observance of “Banned Books Week.” The event is designed to raise awareness of the need to be ever vigilant about the potential for reading censorship by government and other entities in American society — and to bring to light how this freedom often has not been guaranteed around the world. Books ranging from the Holy Bible to Harry Potter to Charlotte's Web and To Kill a Mockingbird have been censored, suppressed, hidden, given limited access and outright banned some place in the world at some time. The United States has not been immune from this type of censorship. In recent years, excerpts were read from such famous banned books as To Kill a Mockingbird and Huck Finn, in addition to The Day No Pigs Would Die, Decameron, Our Bodies – Ourselves, A Wrinkle in Time, Leaves of Grass, the Harry Potter series, Lord of the Rings and Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Interested readers can reserve times by signing up at the library’s reference desk or calling Joni Streber at Watson Library at (937) 382-6661 ext. 345.