The Perks of Freedom of Expression

We’ve been talking lately about the value of a book—with the infinite amount of raw imaginative power between the covers, the usual boundaries of time, space, and societal norms go flying out the window. But with that kind of power, comes inevitable controversy.

Take, for instance, the book that most often made the American Library Association’s top ten most frequently challenged books from the last decade, Stephen Chbosky’s Perks of Being a Wallflower. A brilliant coming of age novel, or a fest pool of sex, drugs, and offensive language?

The novel centers around a high school freshman named Charlie, whose story is told through introspective letters he writes to an unknown reader. Through these letters, we see Charlie dealing with some very difficult issues (like the suicide of his best friend), in addition to the usual teenage issues like fitting in with a new group of friends.

So why was Wallflower listed five times as one of the top ten most frequently challenged books in the last decade? Reasons have varied over the years, but the most popular ones seem to be of the following strains: drug use, homosexuality, nudity, offensive language, sexually explicit material, suicide, and the ever-popular grievance, unsuited to age group.

Let’s start with the basics: when young readers are exposed to Charlie’s story, they may come across many issues they have never read about before. Not everyone has a friend who has committed suicide. Or a friend who is gay. Not everyone is as painfully shy as Charlie can be. But for some people, these issues are their reality. And if the reader is able to take anything out of Charlie’s story, it should be that they are not alone in their struggles, no matter how difficult they seem to be. It is out of loneliness that the most desperate acts fester and implode.

When I first read the book, it was lent to me secretly, under the radar, as if it were illegal to circulate copies of it in public. In fact, I was so wrapped up in the scandal of the book that I read it from behind a magazine, so that other passengers on the plane I was on wouldn’t see what I was doing. But after finishing it in one sitting, I couldn’t hide the tears that leaked out after reading the shocking but optimistic ending. So while the lady across the aisle was weirded out that Cosmopolitan was making me cry, I was busy feeling like I had a friend in this world that understood my torturously shy middle school years.

But, what’s more, Charlie’s character was just the kind of innocently honest voice I needed to walk me through the pain. The book is full of beautiful prose and extremely quotable bits of wisdom, dishing out as much hope as it does pain. Here’s my favorite quote, that, in my opinion, proves the overall positive effect of the book:

And the best part about freedom is that it applies to everyone. If someone doesn’t feel like they can benefit from reading the book, they are under no obligation to expose themselves to a work of fiction dealing with those issues.

Citing another infamously challenged book, Salinger’s American classic The Catcher in the Rye, as inspiration sure didn’t help the case for Wallflower’s consideration as a wholesome novel. But in fact, most bestsellers have been challenged at some point, including Harry Potter, The Golden Compass, Hunger Games, My Sister’s Keeper, Twilight, The Kite Runner, and even the distinguished Maya Angelo’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

This week, Sept. 24 through Oct. 1, is Banned Books Week! Help us celebrate the freedom of ideas and literature’s power to express them by letting us know which challenged book is your favorite in the comments! http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/bannedbooksweek/ideasandresources/free_downloads/2011banned.pdf