My Opinion On Banned Book Week

I know I'm kind of late on this, but banned book week just finished recently and here is my view on this topic.

Why the heck would you ban a freaking book? The way I see it, the ones who look to take a book off of a shelf so others can't read it are quite pathetic. People come to America looking for the freedom to worship how they want, say what they want, and gosh dang it, read what they want; hence the first amendment to the Constitution.

"[Shall not make]...Or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press." Taken from Amendment I, it speaks for itself.

Do those people really not know how valuable our freedoms are? I look at it this way: If the book offends you, or if you don't like it, DON'T EFFING READ IT!

I just don't get it. Why try and censor the natural life process of sex from our children if they're going to learn about it one way or another. Some people have tried to ban Fifty Shades of Grey  by E.L. James just because the main characters Christian and Anastasia have sex (mind you they are in love with each other). Seriously, don't harp on an author for them simply not saying, "They made love," and skimming right over it in a cheap, unrealistic way.

A story going into detail makes it a lot better at that. Self-mutulation, drug use, sexual intercourse, etc. goes on in the world and there's nothing we can do about it.

If I had children, I wouldn't shelter them from this. If I did, they'd possibly rebel, and the only way that we're going to be rest assured that they don't get themselves into a situation like that is if we know that they are educated. And sometimes, fiction stories can teach pretty good life lessons.

Book Review: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

I know it's been a long time since I last posted with school and all, but I want to thank the people who have commented in the C-Box. But anyway, on to the post:

So far on this blog, I've covered the "Other Stuff," pertaining to the title. Though I haven't really covered the "Literature" headline. Well, let's get onto that. Today, the topic is the book The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

The book was certainly an intriguing and different read.

The plot centers around 16 year old Hazel, a precocious girl who was unfortunately stricken with thyroid cancer that spread to her lungs. When her mother signs her up for a cancer support group, she meets and starts a courting with 17 year old Augustus Waters, an osteosarcoma survivor and amputee.

Hazel's paradigm is rather unique. Instead of the stereotypical, "The world is out to get me," attitude, she focuses more-so on a positive outlook, yet does not consider herself serendipitous in such matters.

Green, known for titles such as Looking For Alaska and An Abundance of Katherines, exemplifies the idea that he definitely did his research (for example: using a play off of a well-known William Shakespeare line). I found that the book had a decent amount of balance between reality and fictition. And while a book about a girl hooked up to an oxygen tank and a Sci-Fi obsessed boy with a prosthetic may not be for everybody, the tragedy, occasional pessimism, and tribulations of what once was a normal life, present what John Green has set himself up to be known for.