COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — The Sorensen Library of Forbidden Books opens for business at 58 Cottner Drive.
Surprise 50th birthday gift for Chris Sorensen, Free Small Library for rent, and the books in it are available to the public at no charge.
“The idea is great,” Sorensen told Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil. “There is no greater gift you can give someone, especially if it is a book you have read and loved. There’s really something special about it.”
All the books in the library were selected from a list that various groups from other libraries were trying to ban, Sorensen said.
He loves to read and is passionate about sharing books, especially stories that people have tried to cover up in the past.
“It’s important to show people that there is another side to this story, there are people who don’t believe these books are banned,” Sorensen said. “And, in some small ways, it’s a bit of a push back against those who want to ban books or ask for books to be banned from public libraries or schools.”
Sorensen’s favorite title, “Fahrenheit 451,” is one that appears frequently on forbidden books lists. The main character of the story is a firefighter, like Sorensen, except that the dystopian future Ray Bradbury depicts firefighters as people who light fires, not put them out.
“It’s worrying when your favorite book is there,” he says. “I was so excited when it was one of the first books to disappear from the library.”
Sorensen was stubborn in his belief that no book was forbidden. He doesn’t believe that every book is bad, or that all of them are good.
“I think it’s important to make them available to share,” he said. “Often, they are barred from groups simply because they appear on a list that someone thinks does not meet their political agenda. To ban a book without reading it and knowing what’s available there… I think there are thoughts that can be used from any book to develop your own thinking and your own growth.”
Sorensen called the unique gift a “complete surprise,” given to him during celebrations for his daughter Alyson’s law school graduation.
“Some of my friends and family gave me books as gifts,” he said.
A website has been created with a list of suggested titles, and many have chosen their favorites to send to the Sorensen household.
“To get so many books at once from friends and family — knowing that the books they donate mean something to them — is really special,” Sorensen said.
Alyson said the idea came from a family joke. They used to laugh that every time someone gave Chris a book, his wife and children‘s mother, Megan, grumbled about the thriving library in the basement.
“We’ve been thinking a lot about the news over the last year or so, censorship in public and private schools across the country,” Alyson said. “Thinking about dad, his love of reading and his love of ideas, it seems very natural that finding a way to buck that trend would be a great gift for him. Dad loves nothing more than connecting with people through books and getting people out in his community.”
The family ordered the Little Free Library kit online and Megan set up a private Facebook event, inviting friends and family to be rewarded with book donations.
“We link to some of our favorite stores and encourage people to write notes on the books so dads can open up to everyone who shares a love of reading,” says Alyson.
“That’s a fun thing to do,” Megan said. “People come up with some great ideas that aren’t on the list.”
Sorensen is also given a special stamp, so that every book circulating through the Sorensen Library of Forbidden Books carries one part of it.
“Ideas are important and only people need to protect ideas,” says Alyson. “In my life, if there’s going to be one person who protects ideas, it’s dad. The library is in the front yard where dads can help make sure kids in the neighborhood, or people who happen to drop by, have access to books.”
Since the Forbidden Books Library opened last month, Sorensen said he has seen several books come and go. He had noticed that new books had also been added.
“It’s here, and please use it,” said Sorensen. “If you find something you like, take it and read it. You can even leave me a note in the library and tell me what you think, if you want. ”
Books can be picked up or dropped off at the reader’s leisure. They can be returned, but are not required.
“I’d rather they keep it or share it with other people they think will enjoy reading the book,” he said.
