Library Lines ...

Former Dimmitt resident David Espinoza returned to our fair city recently to reconnect with old friends, meet new ones, and promote his new book, “Dave and Vee: Basketball Bobcats Forever.” The author, now of Salem, Oregon, has written what is to be the first installment in a series of fictional stories about living in Dimmitt and playing sports during high school.

He and his wife, Loni, stopped by to visit us here at Rhoads Memorial Library and graciously donated a copy of the book to us. We are so thankful and have it ready for checkout.

Anothernewreleasereadyfor checkout is “Mother-Daughter Murder Night” by Nina Simon. Award-winning author Kellye Garrett calls this read “the perfect mix of family drama and murder mystery...a lighthearted whodunnit about a grandmother- mother-daughter trio of amateur sleuths. Think ‘Gilmore Girls’ but with murder!”

Nationwide, we are in the middle of Banned Books Week 2023 whose theme is “Let Freedom Read.” According to The American Library Association (ALA), this annual event, held for more than 40 years, spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in public libraries and schools as well as celebrating the freedom to read.

According to ALA, 2022 saw 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources, up from 729 book challenges in 2021. Most of the contested titles were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community and people of color, especially Blacks and Indigenous persons.

Calls to ban books is not some activity that occurs in a distant land far, far away from us. In fact, Texas ranked number one in the nation in book ban attempts. There were 93 attempts to restrict access to 2,349 titles in 2022. Nationwide, while most book ban efforts were aimed at school libraries, 40 percent targeted public libraries.

Case in point: Llano County, whose county seat is the city of Llano, is about 80 miles northwest of Austin and the public library there and its branch libraries barely escaped closure by their county commissioners after months of haggling over whether 17 books should be banned.

The saga began in 2021 when library officials began removing books following complaints from residents that some books were inappropriate for children. Then, County Judge Ron Cunningham ordered the removal of more items, including race-related books: “Caste” by Isabel Wilkerson and “They Called Themselves the KKK: The Birth of an American Terrorist Group” by Susan Campbell Bartoletti. He also fired a librarian who refused to remove them.

Subsequently, a group of citizens filed a lawsuit, arguing that their First Amendment rights were violated by the book removals. Judge Robert Pitman of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas agreed and ordered that the books be returned to the library within 24 hours. Defendants filed an appeal in the Firth Circuit; that trial is scheduled for this fall.

On a lighter note: Dimmitt Book Club will meet Wednesday, Oct. 11, at 2 p.m. in our meeting room. Member Kylene Black will oversee the program, “It’s Game Time!” The event is open to the public.

Until next week, Happy Reading!