Reading Banned Books, and Cooking With Them, Too

Judy Blume was one of the many authors who went to Chicago last Saturday for the Banned Books Week Read-Out, an event co-sponsored by the American Library Association and the Chicago Tribune, including several whose books are among the most frequently challenged in schools and public libraries today: Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being a Wallflower), Lauren Myracle (TTYL), and Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson, the co-authors of the insidious And Tango Makes Three.

Of course, the annual media focus on banned books came early this year, thanks to Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin, who apparently took offense at Daddy’s Roommate back when she was just a small-town Alaskan politician. The Haphazard Gourmet food blog commemorates Palin’s aspirations to literary criticism (along with certain other qualities) with a special cupcake—and then continues the theme with a string of “banned book” recipes that has already brought together Eloise and fairy cakes, along with Ulysses and trifle, with more to come, including guest stars Margaret Cho and Josh Kilmer-Purcell.

And how are you celebrating Banned Books Week? Let us know!

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