Xorte logo

News Markets Groups

USA | Europe | Asia | World| Stocks | Commodities



Add a new RSS channel

 
 


Keywords

2022-05-25 18:48:21| Engadget

Book bans are becoming more prevalent in US school libraries and classrooms, making it harder (but not impossible) for students to get their hands on certain texts that might expand their worldview. To raise awareness of such moves and perhaps protest the threat of literal book burning, Margaret Atwood and Penguin Random House are auctioning a one-off, "unburnable" edition of her classic dystopian novel, The Handmaid's Tale.The publisher says it's "a powerful symbol against censorship and a reminder of the necessity of protecting vital stories." This copy of the book has been printed and bound in fireproof materials, including white heat shield foil pages and a phenolic hard cover. Atwood put a prototype copy to the test by trying to burn it with a flamethrower."The Handmaids Tale has been banned many times sometimes by whole countries, such as Portugal and Spain in the days of Salazar and the Francoists, sometimes by school boards, sometimes by libraries," the author said in a statement. "Lets hope we dont reach the stage of wholesale book burnings, as in Fahrenheit 451. But if we do, lets hope some books will prove unburnable that they will travel underground, as prohibited books did in the Soviet Union.At the time of writing, the highest bid for the book stands at $48,000. The auction will close on June 7th.All proceeds will go to PEN America to support its efforts to fight book bans across the US. In a recent report, the free-expression organization documented 1,586 bans on individual books in 86 school districts across 26 states.Penguin Random House notes that censors' targets tend to be "literary works about racism, gender and sexual orientation, often written by authors of color and LGBTQ+ writers, as well as classroom lessons about social inequality, history and sexuality." It argued that such moves violate students' First Amendment rights and hamper education and the flow of ideas.We are at an urgent moment in our history, with ideas and truth the foundations of our democracy under attack," the publisher's CEO Markus Dohle said. "Few writers have been as instrumental in the fight for free expression as Margaret Atwood.


Category: Marketing and Advertising

 

Latest from this category

11.07AI Update, July 11, 2025: AI News and Views From the Past Two Weeks
10.07SEO Principles: A Guide for Beginners [Infographic]
10.07How Persona-Driven AI Is Reshaping Brand Engagement and Audience Research
10.07AI-Driven ABM: Scaling Precision and Impact for B2B Growth
10.07Faroe Islands tackle overtourism with mystery road trips
09.07Tin Can brings back the landline to keep kids connected, not hooked
09.07What Influencers Want From Brand Partners
09.07Powering Agile Transformation: Why Marketing Is the Hidden Accelerator
Marketing and Advertising »

All news

13.07How Watch Duty became a go-to app during natural disasters
13.07Today's Headlines
13.07Trump's tariffs are looming large over the UKs last surviving steel towns
13.07The summer holiday hacks that saved us hundreds of pounds
13.07The summer holiday hacks that saved us hundreds of pounds
12.07Trump says EU and Mexico face 30% tariff from August
12.07FPI outflows at Rs 1 lakh crore in 2025 so far; Rs 555 crore pulled out in July alone
12.07NSE, NSDL shares slide up to 21% from peaks. Whats behind the selling pressure in unlisted market?
More »
Privacy policy . Copyright . Contact form .