Quote:
Originally Posted by Daithi
Initially I agreed with you, but as I started to think about it, I realized I had been drawn to books because they were banned.
When I was a teenager I was inspired to read Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger because it had been banned. However, I wasn't drawn to other books in a similar manner, or so I thought when I first read your question. As a teenager I had known Gulliver’s Travels and Candide were once banned for political reasons, but I had no desire to read them and I still don't. I also knew that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and To Kill a Mockingbird were all banned because they tackled race issues. As a teen I wasn't interested in reading these books-- BUT I have read them as an adult. I also find it sad they now get banned from schools because they contain racist words. As a teen the books on sex didn't hold much appeal either, but as an adult I have Lolita by Nabokov on my 'to read' list. I also tried reading Ulysses as an adult (Big Fail). I can't say that I read the Harry Potter books because religious nuts tried to get them banned, but I did read The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman because of the religious objections, and The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie is also on my "to read" list (although Midnight's Children is a little higher on that list). Lastly, I also want to read American Psycho by Bret Ellis, and primarily just because of the controversy around the book (it's been banned in several countries).
So, after thinking about it, the fact that a book gets banned or is surrounded by controversy is a draw I think.
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i'm a 33 year old man, controversy still draws me in. i've read The Turner Diaries for exactly that reason. had there not been a hubub i'd have never known that book existed. child or adult, i think we're all drawn to "forbidden fruit".