Note: None of these characters are mind. The passage at the end belongs to the late great JD Salinger (my all time favorite).

For the Love of Books

Castle had been hovering in his chair for a full two minutes waiting expectantly for Kate's attention. She had been studiously ignoring him. He cleared his throat loudly for the fifth time.

"Castle, is there something I can do for you? Get you a decongestant perhaps?"

"Nope, not sick," he said dismissively. "Couldn't be sick this week. This week is far too important!" He was practically bouncing in his chair.

"Good, wouldn't want you spreading germs around the office." She turned back to her paperwork. He continued to stare at her, inching his chair slightly closer to hers every few seconds. When he was nearly sitting on top of her, she gave in.

"What's so important about this week, Castle?"

"And you call yourself a reader? It's Banned Books Week, Detective!"

"Banned Books Week?"

"It's only the most wonderful week of the year! A chance to celebrate all the best books that have been written, all the books that have pushed the boundaries and made a difference!"

"Hmm," Beckett shrugged, "I've never heard of it."

"There's a big read-out at the public library tonight. It's my first year going and I'm so excited. I'm reading a passage from To Kill A Mockingbird. It's my favorite, and it's been challenged repeatedly all over the country since it was published. You should come join us!" He was grinning, brimming with excitement.

"Sorry, Castle. I've got paperwork to do."

"Paperwork?" He deflated a little. "But this is important. Support for literature. The fight against censorship."

"Maybe next year."

"Right, maybe next year." Nodding dejectedly, he got up and headed for the elevator, leaving copies of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and The Awakening on her desk.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you so much for coming out tonight. This year's read-out attendance doubles last year's. This evening, I'm very pleased to welcome our guest celebrity reader, Richard Castle." The crowd applauded for a moment before simmering down.

"But first," the announcer continued, "I'd like to welcome back a woman who has been reading with us for the last five years and who has been kind enough to help organize the event this year. She'll be reading a passage from Catcher in the Rye. Ladies and gentlemen, a round of applause please for Detective Katherine Beckett!"

The crowd clapped loudly, and Castle turned to see Beckett weaving her way through the chairs towards the front of the room. His mouth dropped open a bit in surprise. She nudged him with her hip as she passed and whispered, "Welcome to Banned Books Week, Castle."

I remember once, the summer I was around twelve, teeing off and all, and having a hunch that if I turned around all of a sudden, I'd see Allie. So I did, and sure enough, he was sitting on his bike outside the fence – there was this fence that went all around the course – and he was sitting there, about a hundred and fifty yards behind me, watching me tee off. That's the kind of red hair he had. God, he was a nice kid though. He used to laugh so hard at something he thought of at the dinner table that he just about fell off his chair. I was only thirteen, and they were going to have me psychoanalyzed and all, because I broke all the windows in the garage. I don't blame them. I really don't. I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell of it. I even tried to break all the windows in the station wagon, we had that summer, but my hand was already broken and everything by that time, and I couldn't do it. It was a very stupid thing to do, I'll admit, but I hardly didn't even know I was doing it, and you didn't know Allie. – Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger

Happy Banned Books Week everyone!

If anyone knows of a read-out going on in Chicago this week, please let me know!