Read at your own risk

Some of the most cherished pieces of literature have, at one point or another, been stripped from bookshelves and deemed unsuitable for reading.

Throughout Sarasota from Sept. 27 through Oct. 3, public libraries and local bookstores are participating in Banned Books Week in recognition of once- taboo novels.

For Sarasota County libraries, the occasion is rare that a book is removed from the shelves to be banned, according to Public Services Manager Jennifer Perry. A title hasn’t been pulled off the shelves for the last seven years. Readers and groups, however, have taken issue with books and have put in requests to challenge them by filling out a form.

“I will tell you that there were library systems that did not buy the title ‘Fifty Shades of Grey,’” Perry said. “We were not one of those.”

Although it’s rare that a book is removed, library patrons can fill out a detailed form if they wish to challenge a book. The book is then reviewed within 45 days of the request, and a letter is sent with the final decision.

Bookstore 1 owner Georgia Court will have a display of titles that have been banned in the past and challenged including Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood” and one of her personal favorites, “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini.

“If someone is offended by a piece of literature, for heaven’s sake, don’t buy it, don’t waste your money and don’t read it,” Court said. “I think literature of all kinds is important because that’s the main way in the world that we share knowledge and information with each other.”

Selby and Fruitville public libraries will also have displays with historically banned books to spotlight for readers. Sarasota County Libraries & Historical Resources Director Sarabeth Kalajian remembers helping set up a faux jail cell for the week when she first started working for the libraries.

“It was a dramatic way to demonstrate that the extraordinary ideas and creative thought rep- resented in those books would be inaccessible to us if they were banned and others are allowed to determine what we read,” Kalajian said.

Banned Books Weeks was established in 1982. More than 11,300 books have been challenged since then, according to the American Library Association.