Comments on: I Read Banned Books

By: Ezra

Ezra — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:56:11 +0000

Travis, I often have trouble discerning between stupid & Ayn Rand…

By: Tsiroth

Tsiroth — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:01:47 +0000

Jdog: I'm another fan. I really enjoyed the Guardians of the Flame books.

SPQR: I agree with you. I don't care for the dishonesty of their "marketing."

By: Travis

Travis — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:37:38 +0000

Great timing, I just cracked open The Satanic Bible the other day.

(It's okay. Much of it is stupid, much of it reminds me of Ayn Rand. In any case, I'm finishing it.)

By: Jdog

Jdog — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:33:18 +0000

BP — thank you very much.

By: Mark

Mark — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 07:32:25 +0000

Well, I've been banned from the public library since St. Patrick's Day '04, but that was all a big misunderstanding.

By: SPQR

SPQR — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 03:00:39 +0000

Its the issue that you identify in your last paragraph that has kept me from supporting these efforts.

By: BP

BP — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 01:21:01 +0000

I'll further derail the comments to step forward as a regular Popehat reader and commenter who loved the Guardians of the Flame series. I read it back when they first came out in paperback and then again just a few years ago, and introduced my wife to fantasy fiction via your series. She loved it too. Thank you.

By: Jdog

Jdog — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:37:01 +0000

Well, somebody has to be me; I just drew the short straw.

By: Ezra

Ezra — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:05:32 +0000

Wait, you are that Joel Rosenberg? Man, I'm right there with Ken about the Guardian of the Flames books. After the Videssos books, your series was my favorite back in the day. Of course, you're still wrong about Truman. Heh.

By: Jdog

Jdog — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:55:03 +0000

As to the second: I honestly don't know; I make it a point to not keep up with the subrights stuff, as that way lies madness.

As to the first: And I'm not at all surprised that mention of my minor innovation sparked you making the connection, so , again. Yup; that's me: Joel "How do you make a dwarf float? One dwarf, two scoops of ice cream, then fill the glass with rootbeer" Rosenberg.

By: Ken

Ken — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:54:07 +0000

I'm a big dummy. I never made the connection before that you're that Joel. I ate up Guardians of the Flame back in the day. Very cool. Is your stuff Kindle-available these days?

By: Jdog

Jdog — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:34:34 +0000

Well, I guess that counts; thanks. But I was kinda hoping for the Catholic League, the Moral Majority, or the Brady Center.

Sheesh. I was kind of hoping I'd get one of those for my only purely original (at least, I don't think anybody else stumbled on it before I did) innovation in fantasy fiction: dwarves don't float.

By: Ken

Ken — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:56:07 +0000

It is a matter of great personal and professional shame to me that none of my books have ever made a banned list, far as I know. (I think, alas, that it’s also cost me some sales — getting on a major banned list is kind of like being in Hollywood and making Nixon’s enemies list, back in the day.)

Jdog, your books, and discussion of them, are now all officially banned from Popehat for — uh — "promoting gun culture, in contravention of President Obama's populist agenda."

[Send me my cut via paypal]

By: CEJ

CEJ — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:25:15 +0000

For a twist on Abbie Hoffman leave a banned book on the stacks at the local public library.

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 19:00:31 +0000

My father was a middle school principal (4-7 or so) who would occasionally have to deal with nonsense like this, and was once involved in the least successful book banning attempt I've ever heard of.

When the Harry Potter craze was just getting started (book 1 or 2), a parent came to him concerned over the witchcraft and awfulness in the Harry Potter books. So my dad read it. And liked it. And thought "hey, these books actually have pretty good role models for kids – they do their homework, respect their teachers, etc.". So he told the complaining parent to pound sand, and when they needed a theme for the 6th grade interdisciplinary project, well, he got out the sorting hat.