Library, High School artists celebrate Banned Books Week
Every year, the American Library Association (ALA) invites libraries and communities to uphold the freedom to read by observing Banned Books Week. Read on to find out how the Hassenfeld Library celebrates this occasion, and to learn about an inspiring project from Emily Holt’s Book Art class last spring.
By Kate Pritchard, Library Director
According to the ALA, the first Banned Books Week was held in 1982 in response to rising numbers of challenges and bans in schools, libraries, and bookstores across the country. Every year since then, the ALA has maintained a list of the Top 10 Most Challenged Books in each year. The Top 10 list for 2024 includes many familiar titles, such as "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison and "Looking for Alaska" by John Green. The last few years have also seen increasing challenges to books nationwide, including many here in Tennessee.
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According to the ALA, the first Banned Books Week was held in 1982 in response to rising numbers of challenges and bans in schools, libraries, and bookstores across the country. Every year since then, the ALA has maintained a list of the Top 10 Most Challenged Books in each year. The Top 10 list for 2024 includes many familiar titles, such as "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison and "Looking for Alaska" by John Green. The last few years have also seen increasing challenges to books nationwide, including many here in Tennessee.
The Hassenfeld Library proudly celebrates the freedom to read, which is the freedom to seek knowledge and to hear new perspectives, even when they challenge our ideas. This year, for Banned Books Week, we’ve decorated the library with a large, eye-catching banner that declares “Censorship Is So 1984.” Directly underneath this banner, we are displaying a work from the Unbannable Library, a community art project founded by USN parent Paul Collins. Created by five students in Emily Holt’s Book Art class last spring, this is an oversized, interactive book featuring frequently challenged titles that the students chose for their significance, all connected to the theme of “rebellion.” Their artwork is a testament to the power of books, not just to entertain or to teach us, but to inspire and connect us.
Victor Peng ’26, one of the artists who created the book, explains: “As Americans, we take pride in living in one of the freest nations in the world. Because our country is made up of people from diverse races, socioeconomic backgrounds, and personal experiences, we should all be guaranteed the right to read what interests us. The freedom to read strengthens community and generational storytelling, amplifying the voices of those who might otherwise go unheard. It is both a privilege and a resource for understanding how our world works together. Although the Founding Fathers upheld deep pride for liberty, that ideal is often lost when division takes hold. Reading is not a threat but a lens into our past and a cultivator of knowledge. Education guides us toward the future, and reading places us at the starting line. To be free is to read.”
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Edgehill Campus
2000 Edgehill Ave.
Nashville, TN 37212
Phone: 615-321-8000
Fax: 615-321-0889
Email: info@usn.org
River Campus
1200 County Hospital Road
Nashville, TN 37218
2000 Edgehill Ave.
Nashville, TN 37212
Phone: 615-321-8000
Fax: 615-321-0889
Email: info@usn.org
River Campus
1200 County Hospital Road
Nashville, TN 37218
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University School of Nashville models the best educational practices. In an environment that represents the cultural and ethnic composition of Metropolitan Nashville, USN fosters each student’s intellectual, artistic, and athletic potential, valuing and inspiring integrity, creative expression, a love of learning, and the pursuit of excellence.
University School of Nashville models the best educational practices. In an environment that represents the cultural and ethnic composition of Metropolitan Nashville, USN fosters each student’s intellectual, artistic, and athletic potential, valuing and inspiring integrity, creative expression, a love of learning, and the pursuit of excellence.