CNN —

As the National Book Awards came to a close on Wednesday, finalists for the prestigious literary prizes took the stage in New York to speak about the Israel-Hamas war, with others at the ceremony also choosing to address banned books.

    • UnspecificGravity@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      That’s why people need to read a LOT of books. The only thing worse than someone who doesn’t read at all is the person that reads like one book a year and let’s it define their whole personality.

    • ExFed@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      I think it would depend on the books.

      Isn’t that the whole argument for banning some books and not others?

      • Salamendacious@lemmy.worldOP
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        1 year ago

        All I’m saying is I don’t think we’d be better off if more people started reading books like the Turner diaries. I’m not making a censorship argument here

        • ExFed@lemm.ee
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          1 year ago

          Aye, didn’t want to accuse you of advocating for censorship. Just a friendly reminder that even the most “dangerous” texts are that way because of context, not content.

          Also I was today years old when I learned about The Turner Diaries. Yikes.

          • Salamendacious@lemmy.worldOP
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            1 year ago

            There’s a book called the collector that had inspired a couple serial rapist/killers. I consider myself a curious person and I truly love learning but there are some books that I would love to see only in libraries and very dusty because I don’t know how they add constructively to society.

    • PersnickityPenguin@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Who else has a copy of “Mein Kampf” or “My New Order: A Collection of Speeches” on their nightstand.

      Right guys?

      • Ookami38@sh.itjust.works
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        1 year ago

        Like, I get the joke, but yeah, uniroically people should read those and just about everything else they can. That’s what being well rounded is, taking in all of the information you can, from all sides, interpreting it, and determining how it fits, or doesn’t, with all of the other knowledge you’ve learned.