friday5 for October 5, 2012

1. Fandoms collide! Danny Strong of all-things-amazing-ever, has been named as the writer for the two-part Mockingjay film extravaganza. I cannot express how completely fangirl excited I am about this news. Danny is phenomenal both behind and in front of the camera. He is hot off his big Emmy win and though I never would have guessed he'd pen the penultimate and final Hunger Games films, I think he is the perfect choice and will do a brilliant job.

2. Banned Books Week. It's such an important week in the publishing world and every year I find myself surprised to see some amazing work of fiction has been banned. Most of the reasons they give for banning a book leave me more than a little wtf guy? The Huffington Post put out a fun little infographic to highlight a sampling of banned books and educate us on ignorant censorship! Celebrate the freedom to read and enjoy one of these banned books today!

3. This. Just. So excited. And happy. And can't wait. Yeah :)

4. It's not my country, but we still keep a close eye on the US Presidential election. Odds are, the outcome will affect us Canadians down the road. I'm not surprised that one of the highlights of this week's debate was Romney's comment about Big Bird. It turned into quite the internet meme as the week progressed so I think it definitely warrants a mention in this week's friday5. Personally, I wouldn't want to piss Big Bird off. As his name suggests, he's a pretty big guy and it would appear he knows a thing or two about coming out swinging.

5. But back to Canada. This weekend we celebrate Thanksgiving. I have a lot to be thankful for this year so I will definitely be thinking about all of those things as I turkey it up over the next few days. Which will be followed by humble pie, and finally, a shame coma. It's an annual tradition! Time to don your finest Thanksgiving pants and celebrate what matters most. Gluttony. Uh, I mean family!

"Well, here's your turkey. Enjoy!"

you say banned, i say recommended

A few thoughts on Banned Books Week:

*Banning a book just draws attention to it, alerting us to the fact that the book contains some form of honest, gritty, human experience. Anything that stirs up that kind of passion and emotion has got to be an interesting read.

*If a child is old enough to go the library without parental guidance, said child is also old enough to decide what they want to read. Kids are smarter than we give them credit for. They're going to pick something that interests them. Let them. Discovering what appeals to them will help them develop dreams and ambitions.

*Why anyone would want to discourage reading of any kind is completely beyond me. Reading questionable material is better than not reading at all.

*If a book's content is worth fighting, it's worth fighting for.

Conclusion: Read a banned book today! It will make you wiser, more worldly, and a whole lot more fun at parties!