For the the first time, Banned Books Week, a campaign launched in 1982 in response to increased numbers of challenges to books in schools, libraries and bookstores, will include Alexandria-area writers and readers at a new local event titled “Let Freedom Read: A Celebration of Banned Books.”

The celebration will include short readings from books by authors as diverse as James Baldwin and Judy Blume, Sinclair Lewis and Zora Neal Hurston. The event is free and will include refreshments and door prizes. The fun begins at 6:30 pm on Friday, October 6, at Cherry Street Books in Alexandria (503 Broadway Street).