Book banning has been a part of American culture for a long time. Back in 1851, for instance, Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin was banned and even burned for depicting the horrors of slavery.
But if it seems like book banning has gotten worse recently, you aren’t imagining that. The American Library Association reports that there was a record-breaking number of attempts to ban books in schools and libraries in 2023, up 65% from 2022, which itself was a record-breaking year.
Books under attack tend to be for young adults, but middle-grade stories, adult titles and picture books are on the chopping block, too. In many cases, these books feature characters of color or LGBTQ+ backgrounds. They center on themes or ideas around race or matters of sexuality; contain what book banners deem offensive language; and confront “uncomfortable topics” like sexual wellbeing, violence, abuse, grief and death.
The most banned book nationwide is Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe (a graphic memoir about gender identity). Other commonly banned titles include The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (a novel about an introverted teenager navigating high school), The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison (a novel about a Black girl growing up after the Great Depression) and The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank (her real-life account of going into hiding with her Jewish family during the Nazi occupation). All it takes is one person claiming that an illustration, character, passage or page is “offensive” for a book to be challenged. School and public libraries have their own processes by which they manage complaints, so the way that challenges are handled will depend on where you live.
Despite the fact that there were 5,894 book bans across 41 states and 247 public school districts from July 2021 to June 2023, most people do not want books to be banned. Specifically, 92% of parents, grandparents and guardians trust librarians to curate appropriate books and materials for their children.
During Banned Books Week (October 5-11, 2025), it’s critical to remember that stories have tremendous power to help readers build compassion and overcome prejudice. We need more books — not fewer — about people living on the margins. Stories like these aren’t “political,” “dangerous” or “un-American” just because they reflect the experiences and perspectives of those outside the majority.
To learn more about book banning and how you can push back against those impinging on our First Amendment right to read what we want, these five incisive titles will help.
The ABA Right to Read Handbook: Fighting Book Bans and Why It Matters by the American Booksellers Association
The ABA Right to Read Handbook reminds us that we’re not alone in our frustration over book bans. Kicking off with “A Declaration of the Rights of Readers,” this slender but weighty tome offers context, interviews and suggestions for defending books in your community. One inspiring takeaway: “Book banners can often be defeated by the real majority that wants a modern and inclusive education for their children.”
Banned Together: Our Fight for Readers’ Rights by Ashley Hope Pérez (editor)
In 2021, Ashley Hope Pérez’s young adult novel Out of Darkness became one of the most banned books in the country. Disheartened, she decided to compile an anthology to spotlight challenged titles and present clever comebacks aimed at censorship. Fifteen notable authors (including Elana K. Arnold, Nikki Grimes and Bill Konigsberg) contributed to Banned Together. Pérez leaves young readers with a rousing reminder: “We write because we care about you, your understanding of yourself and the people around you.”
That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America by Amanda Jones
Amanda Jones has worked for more than 20 years as an educator and librarian in Louisiana. When a local public hearing was called in 2022 to discuss “book content,” she knew that book banners were joining forces to purge shelves of titles with LGBTQ+ references and discussions of race and racism. Jones spoke up, and since then, she has faced death threats and been called a “groomer.” She sued her harassers for defamation and continues to motivate booklovers to push back against those trying to whitewash library shelves.
This Book Won’t Burn by Samira Ahmed
In this searing young adult novel, Samira Ahmed introduces readers to Noor Khan, who is forced to spend her senior year in a brand-new high school far from home — a school where hundreds of books are being removed from the library. They have been labeled as “obscene” and “pornographic,” but Noor understands the real problem is that they were written by queer and BIPOC authors. She rallies against this injustice, even as she knows her actions will infuriate school administrators and fellow students alike.
The Genius of Judy: How Judy Blume Rewrote Childhood for All of Us by Rachelle Bergstein
Since the 1970s, Judy Blume has made innumerable children feel seen and heard by telling what she calls “honest stories.” Rachelle Bergstein examines Blume’s family life, artistic journey and creative vision, and she explains how Blume became the most banned author in the mid-1980s. (“The censors had it out for Judy. They were mobbish and rough, demonstratively flashing their pitchforks.”) Bergstein spins a vivid history of our country’s culture wars and their direct impact on Blume.
