Banned Books Week Turns 30

 

In honor of the 30th annual Banned Books Week, here are short films based on two of my favorite stories by two of my favorite banned authors.

All Summer in a Day (1982) is based on a short story by Ray Bradbury and aired as part of PBS's phenomenal (and sadly defunct) children's series 'Wonderworks':



...and The Lottery (1969), based on Shirley Jackson's story of the same name and adapted for Encyclopædia Britannica's 'Short Story Showcase':

Part One

Part Two


I recommend reading (or re-reading) both, or choose a favorite from the American Library Association's lists of frequently challenged books or the London Libraries' list of banned books. Happy reading!

What I did on my summer vacation...

Autumn is my favorite time of year. I love, love, love when the seasons start to change, but this year, for the first time in several years, I have a proper summer holiday to look back on. It was full of celestial events, sunny weather, family reunions, lovely food, county fairs and road trips. I watched fireworks and piglet races, built the Frankenstein's monster of backyard slip-n-slides, swam, soaked up the sun and caught fireflies.

the transit of Venus in June, seen through my homemade optical projector (note the sunspots!)

Saugatuck beach on Michigan's eastern shore

the waves at Saugatuck

Saugatuck dunes

blueberry picking

the spoils of over-enthusiastic berry picking

walking in the woods

my brother-in-law and Pajamas Johnson enjoying the sprinklers

up in a swing

my sister's perfect mojitos

sparklers on the 4th of July

Hope you had a lovely summer, too!