Banned Books Week Begins Sept. 25

Banned Books Week is Sept. 25 – Oct. 2
Celebrate your freedom to read!

What do The Great Gatsby, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and Harry Potter have in common?  They are all books that have been banned or challenged at libraries and schools in the United States.  In fact, it’s likely you have read a few Banned or Challenged Classics.

Beginning in 1982, Banned Books Week (BBW) has been celebrated annually to mark the importance of intellectual freedom, the freedom to read and the First Amendment. Each year the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) compiles and publishes a list of the top ten most frequently challenged books at libraries and schools.

According to the OIF, 460 challenges to materials were reported  in 2009.  Included in that year’s top 10 challenged books list are Twilight,  To Kill a Mockingbird, The Chocolate War, and The Color Purple.

Over the past nine years (2001-2009), the OIF reported that American libraries were faced with total of 4,312 challenges, which included:

  • 1,413 challenges due to “sexually explicit” material
  • 1,125 challenges due to “offensive language”
  • 897 challenges due to material deemed “unsuited to age group”
  • 514 challenges due to “violence”
  • 344 challenges due to “homosexuality”
  • 109 materials were challenged because they were “anti-family”
  • 269 were challenged because of their “religious viewpoints”

Thanks to the commitment of librarians, teachers, parents, and students, most book challenges are unsuccessful.  We hope that during Banned Books Week 2010 you’ll take a moment to think about your freedom to read and consider the role that libraries play in protecting that right!

Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association; American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression; the American Library Association; American Society of Journalists and Authors; Association of American Publishers; and the National Association of College Stores. It is endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.

Now Showing at the Art Gallery: Soojin Kim

Please stop by and check out the new exhibit at the Caturano and Company Art Gallery – Sweetness – featuring paintings by artist Soojin Kim.

Soojin Kim
Sweetness
September 21 – October 21, 2010

Opening Reception for the Artist
Thursday, September 23
4:30pm – 6:30pm

You can learn more about the artist and view more of her work  at http://www.soojinkim.net/.

All are invited to a reception for the artist on September 23rd, from 4:30pm – 6:30pm.  Meet the artist, view the art, enjoy the refreshments!

Database of the Month: SAGE Sociology Full-text

The SAGE Sociology Full-text database has just been added to our extensive list of database offerings! Not just for sociologists, this database will have broad appeal to researchers in a variety of fields. The collection provides us with the full-text of many core journals that were previously only accessible via Interlibrary Loan.

SAGE Sociology includes the full text of 36 peer-reviewed journals published by SAGE and participating societies, covering such subjects as Childhood, Contemporary Sociology, Comparative Sociology, Consumer Culture, Classical Sociology, Ethnic Studies, Gender Studies, Leisure Studies, Social Theory, Sociology of Sport, and Sociology of Work and Employment (Labor Studies).

The following journals are included:

* Ranked in the Thomson Reuters 2009 Journal Citation Reports®
  • Acta Sociologica*
  • American Behavioral Scientist*
  • Armed Forces & Society*
  • Body & Society*
  • Childhood*
  • Cultural Sociology*
  • Current Sociology*
  • Ethnography
  • European Journal of Social Theory
  • Gender & Society*
  • International Review for the Sociology of Sport
  • International Sociology*
  • Journal of Black Studies*
  • Journal of Classical Sociology
  • Journal of Consumer Culture
  • Journal of Contemporary Ethnography*
  • Journal of Family Issues*
  • Journal of Sociology*
  • Journal of Sport and Social Issues*
  • Men and Masculinities*
  • Race & Class*
  • Rationality and Society*
  • Sexualities
  • Social Compass*
  • Social Science Information*
  • Social Studies of Science*
  • Sociological Methods & Research*
  • Sociology*
  • Space and Culture
  • Theory, Culture & Society
  • Thesis Eleven
  • Time & Society*
  • Work and Occupations*
  • Work, Employment & Society*
  • Young
  • Youth & Society*

Connect to this database:

Please visit the SAGE Sociology database to explore this valuable database further, or visit our Databases page to view a complete list of our resources.

——————————–
Database of the Month provides a very brief introduction to an important research database, highlighting key features of the database that you should know about. If you would like more information about this database (or any of the library’s databases) please contact the Reference Desk.  If you would like a demonstration of this database for a class, please contact our Coordinator of User Education, Elizabeth Galoozis.

Welcome New Students, Faculty & Staff!

The staff of the Bentley Library extends a warm welcome to our new students, faculty and staff.  Many of you will receive an orientation to the Library during First Week, however we also encourage you to take a look at our online library orientation guide. It will only take you a few minutes to view, and it will provide you with useful information about library resources and services.

If you have any questions about the Library the please don’t hesitate to ask for help at the Library Service Desk or Reference Desk.