• more about #strongwords more comments →
    rixatrix: Francesca Lia Block's books absolutely saved me in high school. I was a depressed, angry little girl who hated all the conformity and was just looking... more »
    RisaPlata: I never understand when someone says they want to burn a book, because the concept of "book-burning" creates such a visceral reaction in me, and proba... more »
    bovary: Guy Montag to the rescue! more »
    beatrice2000: I was a big FLB fan as a teen, learning so much about Los Angeles (as a Long Island girl) from her, getting into more art films and punk rock because ... more »
    Mafalda para Presidente: If they ban this one for using racial slurs I suppose they might also ban all of Toni Morrison's books while they're at it. Displaying it doesn't mean... more »
    MattapanTrolley: Let's send Weetzie, Duck, Dirk, Witch Baby, Cherokee Bat and the rest of the gang from Grandma Fifi's cottage over to the CCLU to demonstrate how civi... more »
    Pizza!Pizza!Pizza!: The can throw it in with the Merchant of Venice and Huckleberry Finn. My god, these are the same people who think it's racist to even mention someone'... more »
    Slovenly Muse: How does reading about a gay teenager or seeing the word "nigger" in print, in the context of a story, harm a child? Beyond that, how does seeing a bo... more »
    dj_chick: This sums up my opinion more eloquently that I could have... Books won't stay banned. They won't burn. Ideas won't go to jail. In the long run of hist... more »
    Dodgergirl: Mr. Samuel Clemens had this to say about when HIS books were banned, and I think it's quite appropriate given who is attempting to do the banning of t... more »
    randomnessish: I just remember watching American History X on FX, and the words "shit" and "fuck" were censored, but "nigger" wasn't. I understand that to censor it... more »
    mermil: One nice thing you can do to support your libraries is to purchase a swell Banned Books poster from the American Library Association. Call me Pollyann... more »
    angelheadedhipster: I feel like there are certain things, when put into a historical perspective, you don't want to be associated with. Pretty sure book-burning is one of... more »
    embarcadero13: Never burn books, but how necessary is it to drop the N word in literature these days? I ask that every time I see a Tarantino film. What does it add ... more »
    weetziebat: CCLU, if you don't like the books in the PUBLIC library, you are free to open your own private library and only put books that agree with you in it. more »
  • #strongwords

    Author On "Controversial" Book: "They Want To Burn It Like A Witch"

    A few days ago, writer Francesca Lia Block found out that her book, Baby Be-Bop, might get burned. Today, she speaks with Salon, saying: More »
  • #strongwords

    "Explicitly Vulgar, Racial, And Anti-Christian"

    Robert C. Braun of the Christian Civil Liberties Union in Milwaukee seeks the right to burn his local library's copy of Baby Be-Bop by author Francesca Lia Block. The book explores a gay teen's struggles. More here: [American Library Association]