

Literature and Poetry
Most Frequently Challenged Authors of the 21st Century
The American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) receives reports from libraries, schools, and the media on attempts to ban books in communities across the country. Where can you find more information on why a particular book was banned? more »
CultureWatch Reviews:
Biographer Gwinn writes in Emily Greene Balch: The Long Road to Internationalism that Balch “had been fundamental to the life and work of Jane Addams and other settlement and peace workers; she had been an influential teacher, revered friend, a respected scholar and visionary thinker." Dr. Mukherjee, author of Emperor of All Maladies, explains with great clarity just exactly what cancer is, how much we know about it at this point, and possible new directions in which the world of science might proceed to deal with it. more »
CultureWatch Review of 1493 by Charles Mann: Pause and batten down the hatches before you plunge in!
Julia Sneden reviews 1493 by Charles Mann and wonders whether it would come up to the standard Mann had set so high with 1491. She writes, "The answer, dear reader, is a resounding 'Yes!' That answer does not, however, come without a few caveats." more »
TechNOlogy ...To E or Not To E, That Is the Question
Julia Sneden writes: Just leave me alone with my books, my real, physical, weighty books. Just try entering “e-book” into Google, if you want a lesson in technological confusion. Our public libraries are struggling with the parameters of e-book usage as are the publishers more »