Welcome to Episode 50! Thanks for joining us for a milestone episode. We are celebrating our big 5-0 by bringing on our very first guest, Risha Allen, who is something of an expert in banned books. When we dreamed up the list of possible show topics for 16:1 several years ago, banned books was one of the first things we discussed, and we are happy that we saved it for this special guest! If you don't know Risha Allen, you can find her on Instagram at @rishaallen and as Tiktok's Music Teacher at @rishdishfish. Risha is a National Board Certified educator who is spending her 15th year of teaching doing something she's never done before: teaching music! Prior to teaching music at the elementary level, Risha developed her mastery teaching high school English in three different states (Kentucky, Ohio, and North Dakota). Her relationship to banned books? Well... it involves young adult literature, a bit of witchcraft, and a LOT of committees. Listen to find out why Risha is southeastern Kentucky's most notorious leader of literature circles! Join Katie and Chelsea as they get to hear Risha's never-before-told story of censorship, the power of social media, and the lasting gifts of falling in love with reading.

Content note: discussions of sexual assault and other adult content are included in this episode.

Authors Mentioned:

Laurie Halse Anderson

Chris Crutcher

Jo Knowles

Irving Roth

Sheri Reynolds

Nikki Giovanni

Sources:

Banned Books Week

American Library Association - List of America's Libraries 2021 Special Report: Covid - 19

NBC News - "Book bans in schools are catching fire. Black authors say uproar isn’t about students." by Tat Bellamy-Walker

PEN America - The Freedom to Write

20 Thousand Hertz - Aural Exam

The Book Loft - "Eleanor and Hick: The Love Affair That Shaped a First Lady" by Susan Quinn

Reading Partners - "The little-known history of banned books in the United States" By Ally Bush

The New York Times - "Where Are the Hardest Places to Live in the U.S.?" by Alan Flippen

Tiktok - @mndiaye_97