My new Borders Rewards card arrived in the mail the other day and I began to think about all the books off the “banned books” lists I could buy at a discounted rate.

The shelves would hold the work of Maya Angelou and Sapphire, Dante’s “The Inferno” and J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” novels. The collection would contain anonymous works, “Go Ask Alice” for one, and works by prolific authors, Judy Blume’s “Deenie” would be another.

This week marks Banned Books Week, so it seems appropriate to begin collecting now.

You might think because you haven’t seen fiery images of books on a pyre in the parking lot of a local elementary school that book banning is an act of the past.

You’d be wrong.

In the past year, the American Foundation for Free Expression and the National Coalition Against Censorship together fought 47 efforts to challenge or ban books in 22 states — Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.

The American Library Association handles hundreds of challenges each year and research suggests that for every challenge reported, four or five go unreported. In 2007, the ALA handled more than 400 challenges — more than one for every day of the year.

Now that you know books continue to be banned, you probably are wondering what GLBT lit has been lifted from the shelves and what books are targeted.

“Growing Up Gay in America” by Franklin Rich, “Homosexuality: What Does It Mean?” by Julie K. Endersbe, “Making Sexual Decisions: The Ultimate Teen Guide (It Happened to Me, No. 4)” by L. Kris Gowen and “A-List #6, Some Like It Hot” by Zoey Dean faced challenges in St. Louis, the birthplace of the effort that led to GLBT History Month in October.

“The Chocolate War” by Robert Cormier faced challenges in Maryland and Florida.

In Oklahoma, “The Bermudez Triangle” by Maureen Johnson was removed from circulation in a middle school library following complaints from a parent about homosexual themes and underage drinking in the book.

Two children’s books, “Heather Has Two Mommies” and “Daddy’s Roommate,” make the hit list year after year.

Two weeks ago San Francisco activist Michael Petrelis and his partner Mike Merrigan donated copies “Heather Has Two Mommies” and “Daddy’s Roommate” to the town library in Wasilla, Alaska, hometown of GOP vice presidential nominee and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

The library had a copy of “Heather,” but apparently the book was not circulating and therefore removed to make room for other books.

Back in 1996 a certain gay-themed book was causing some concern in Wasilla. “Pastor I am Gay” by Howard Bess was not destined for The New York Times bestseller list, nor was it on a must-read list at the local Assembly of God, where Palin worshiped. The Assembly of God sought to remove the book from local bookstores. And it was in this atmosphere that Palin says she asked rhetorically about the removal of books at the Wasilla town library.

A local newspaper, the Frontiersman, reported that Palin asked a librarian at a meeting “if she would object to censorship even if people were circling the library in protest about a book.”

The librarian, who has since moved on from Wasilla, said she would fight censorship.

And you too should stand against censorship, even if just asked rhetorically what you would do “if people were circling the library in protest about a book.”

We hear a lot — and read a lot — about free speech and a free press. We think mostly about newspapers and our voices of protest, but we must also protect the freedom to publish, sell, circulate and read books — novels, biographies, histories, handbooks, essays and poetry collections, textbooks and encyclopedias.

Fighting for a teenager’s access to “Homosexuality: What Does It Mean?” might not seem as significant as going to battle for access to a Justice Department memo on CIA torture methods, but it is just that important.

So, read any banned books lately?