Banned Book List- How many have you read?

I belong to a couple of writing online groups and they brought up a list of banned books. I was very interested in this list as I have never even heard of this. I have heard of people burning books and whatever other censorship they could come up with, but I was surprised books are actually banned. And more surprised at how many of these books I have read, a large portion from school assignments.

I am not sure how I feel about a list such as this. I always thought if it isn't good, I simply won't read it. We have our "freedom" to express ourselves creatively. When someone is expressing him or herself in a manner I don't agree with, or am not comfortable with, I generally choose to take myself out of the situation. But I guess those that feel strongly about a certain subject matter or expression also have their "freedom" to complain or point out their dislike. Isn't that what freedom is all about? We can't allow those to express themselves in whatever way they want to without allowing others to weigh in their opinion on the matter or manner of expression- right? I believe a dialog is healthy, so long as everyone involved can be respectful and openminded(not a trait most American's have). So, lets keep expressing ourselves, lets keep talking about what we appreciate or dislike. We should feel free to create something and react to others creations. Both are free thought. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas said: Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us

Banned Book Week will be held Sept. 27- Oct. 4, 2008. Celebrating the Freedom to Read is observed during the last week of September each year. Observed since 1982, this annual ALA event reminds Americans not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted. This year, 2007, marks BBW's 26th anniversary (September 29 through October 6). BBW celebrates the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish to read them. After all, intellectual freedom can exist only where these two essential conditions are met. http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/bannedbooksweek/bannedbooksweek.cfm

I suggest you check out the website. You can find the most challenged books for this year. You can see why they were challenged(Good if you want to stay away from certain subject or situational matter). Below is a list of the top 100 banned books. I have read at least a dozen, now I am looking forward to reading more. :o)

A Clockwork Orange
A Farewell to Arms
American Psycho
Beloved
Brave New World
Cat's Cradle
Catch-22
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Go Tell It on the Mountain
Gone with the Wind
Heart of Darkness
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
In Cold Blood
Invisible Man
Lolita
Lord of the Flies
Naked Lunch
Native Son
Nineteen Eighty-Four
Of Mice and Men
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Rabbit, Run
Slaughterhouse-Five
Song of Solomon (novel)
Sons and Lovers
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
The Bluest Eye
The Catcher in the Rye
The Color Purple
The Grapes of Wrath
The Great Gatsby
The Handmaid's Tale
The House of the Spirits
The Jungle
The Outsiders
The Satanic Verses
The Sun Also Rises
Their Eyes Were Watching God
To Kill a Mockingbird
Tropic of Cancer
Ulysses