To Read or Not to Read

Earlier today, in my adolescent psychology course, we discussed censorship in schools. Our professor mentioned that we might want to look up the 100 most banned books online. I did so this afternoon. On this list I found The Anarchist Cookbook  by William Powell. I've heard about this book before and decided to look into it. The book is basically an instruction manual on how to make bombs and use weapons as a means of violent revolution. I thought the book might be an interesting read so I checked Amazon. I was surprised to find a lengthy note from the author on the Amazon page. The book was published in 1971 when Powell was just 19. Powell strongly opposed the vietnam war and his book was fueled by the times. In the note, Powell explains that he no longer believes in the content of his book. He also explains that he somehow lost rights to the book and despite his request that the publisher discontinue it the book remains in print. He has asked the book's new publisher to remove the book from print but has had no luck there either. He ends the note saying, "I consider it to be a misguided and potentially dangerous publication which should be taken out of print."

After reading this, I had a long discussion with my girlfriend about it. I told her that I would like to pick up a copy and read it. I just think it would be an interesting portrait of the times, definitely worth a look. My girlfriend asked if I felt that would be wrong because it went againt the author's wishes. I'm still not entirely sure how to answer that. Perhaps it depends on the intent of the reader. It does raise a great deal of interesting questions. As writers, to what degree are we responsible for what we unleash upon the world? Is it ever possible to stuff the cat back in the bag once it has found its way out? I feel that as a writer I should be honest and always say what I'm thinking, but even then I think there is a point where I have to put my moral compass to work. As far as reading the book, I'm not sure yet. I'll keep you posted.