The Power of Story to Unite Us

For this year’s Banned Books Week, the J. Willard Marriott Library will feature award-winning author Laurie Halse Anderson. She will discuss the connection between books being banned and the “difficult” subject matter some of them contain, and examine our collective responsibility to offer America’s readers a robust body of literature.

“Censorship is the child of fear and the father of ignorance and the desperate weapon of fascists everywhere.”
– Laurie Halse Anderson

Anderson’s books have been frequently challenged and banned. Her young adult novel Speak has appeared on the American Library Association’s list of most challenged books for decades due to its themes of sexual assault, profanity and its depiction of a student who loses her voice after experiencing sexual assault. Anderson’s memoir Shout, where she writes about being raped when she was 13 years-old and eventually finds her voice, has also been banned.


Acclaimed author, Laurie Halse Anderson.
Laurie Halse Anderson is the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award-winning author of numerous books for young people. She is a New York Times bestselling author whose writing spans young readers, teens and adults. Combined, her books have sold more than eight million copies.

Two of her novels, Speak and Chains, were National Book Award finalists. Two more of her books, The Impossible Knife of Memory and Shout, were long-listed for the National Book Awards. The American Library Association gave Laurie the Margaret A. Edwards Award for her significant contribution to young adult literature. She has been honored for her battles for intellectual freedom by the National Coalition Against Censorship and the National Council of teachers and of English. She is a member of RAINN’s National Leadership Council and frequently speaks about sexual violence.


Tuesday, September 30, Noon
J. Willard Marriott Library, Gould Auditorium, Level 1