Day #2: The Best Book That I Had to Read For a Class
I am the person that was always excited in school whenever the required reading was handed out. I was never disappointed. I enjoyed everything that I was ever *required* to read. A Separate Peace by John Knowles stands out in my mind as my favorite although All Quiet on the Western Front is a close second. There are truly too many favorites to choose from. I also get excited when my kids have required reading and will usually read it with them (if I haven't already read the book) so that we can discuss it. It is so fun! Kameron and I had some great talks about Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. We both loved it. The same with The Giver. It's funny because Bryn just read both of those this year and didn't like either of them.
Back to A Separate Peace. I always thought that this was a banned book. I remember my English teacher talking to us about it. Apparently it is actually only a challenged book but it has been challenged several times and as been banned as high school reading in some school districts. Thankfully not at my high school in Kansas City...which was quite a progressive school and school district.
FYI-- I love a banned (or challenged) book. Tell me I can't read something and I will go right out and read it. For example, the only books my mom ever told me that I couldn't read were the Flowers in the Attic series. I read them immediately. I have never restricted my kids from reading anything although I have had conversations with them about the book's content and if they were ready for it. Sometimes they were and sometimes they weren't. They ultimately made the final decision. If they chose to read the book we had some good conversations about their reading. Really any conversation about books is a good conversation!
This a great book. I also think it stands the test of time.
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