Literature Suppressed on Sexual Grounds. Revised Edition

The aim of this set is to spotlight some 400 works that have been censored, banned, or condemned because of their political, social, religious, or sexual content. The entries, which include a summary, censorship history, and brief bibliography, range widely from Aristotle through Galileo and on up to Adolf Hitler and Judy Blume. Such well-known prohibited works as de Sade's 120 Days of Sodom, the Communist Manifesto, and Huckleberry Finn are included here, but so are many other works that are now less controversial, e.g., Milton's Areopagitica and Uncle Tom's Cabin. Some of the censorship histories are several pages long, but others are very short; Born on the Fourth of July gets only 50 words. Though most of the works are worth notice, too many describe fairly vapid objections: Fail-Safe was challenged by a school librarian who thought the book would undermine "America's confidence in their defense system." But as one might expect, many of the entries, such as the one for The Satanic Verses, are harrowing. Prepared by well-qualified scholars who have written and lectured extensively on censorship, the set is a very readable gathering of much useful information. It provides more depth and is more current than either Anne L. Haight's Banned Books (1978. 4th ed.) or ALA's Banned Books Resource Guide (1995). (Index not seen.)APeter A. Dollard, Alma Coll. Lib., Mt. Pleasant, MI
Reader's review:
Summary: a must read
I had to read this for government, it is worth the time. It goes in depth about books banned; art of love, casndide, dubliners, the handmaid's tale, judge the obscure, lolita, madame bovary, and women in love. The sad fact is that there are millions of book lost by the surpression of a few, with it went our first amendment rights!