LibGuides: Banned Books Week: Home

Celebrating the Freedom to Read

What is Banned Books Week?

An annual event usually held in September, Banned Books Week is a time to celebrate and promote the freedom to read.

Why are books challenged and banned?

Books are usually challenged and banned when they contain information or ideas that one group considers dangerous or harmful for another group. For example, oftentimes parents will challenge books in order to protect children from what they deem to be "inappropriate" content, whether this is in the form of topics or language. The ALA gives the top three reasons for challenging materials as:

the material was considered to be "sexually explicit"
the material contained "offensive language"
the material was "unsuited to any age group"

- Banned Books Q&A, ALA 2017

Online Resources

ALA Banned & Challenged Books
The American Library Association's website with information on banned books as well as Banned Books Week.
Banned Books Week
The official website for Banned Books Week.
Banned Books Week Twitter
The official Twitter of Banned Books Week. A great source of information and resources, as well as links to places celebrating the freedom to read.
Office for Intellectual Freedom
An ALA site, the OIF implements "ALA policies concerning the concept of intellectual freedom as embodied in the Library Bill of Rights." Each year, they compile a list of challenged books.

Resources in the Library

100 Banned Books
Call Number: Z658.U5 K35 199
100 Banned Books profiles well-known, often classic works that have been censored for religious, political, social or sexual reasons. Each entry gives readers a summary of the work, its censorship history and suggestions for further reading.
Banned Books...Resource Guide
Call Number: Z658.U5 B35
Banned Books: Informal Notes on Some Books Banned for Various Reasons at Various Times & in Various Places by Anne Lyon Haight
Call Number: Z1019 .H15 1955

Recently Challenged Books in the Library

This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki; Jillian Tamaki (Illustrator)
Call Number: CURRIC PZ4.T358 T45 2014
Every summer, Rose goes with her mom and dad to a lake house in Awago Beach. It's their getaway, their refuge. Rosie's friend Windy is always there, too, like the little sister she never had. But this summer is different. Rose's mom and dad won't stop fighting, and when Rose and Windy seek a distraction from the drama, they find themselves with a whole new set of problems. One of the local teens - just a couple of years older than Rose and Windy - is caught up in something bad... Something life threatening. It's a summer of secrets, and sorrow, and growing up, and it's a good thing Rose and Windy have each other.
Looking for Alaska by John Green
First drink First prank First friend First girl Last words Miles "Pudge" Halter is abandoning his safe-okay, boring-life. Fascinated by the last words of famous people, Pudge leaves for boarding school to seek what a dying Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps." Pudge becomes encircled by friends whose lives are everything but safe and boring. Their nucleus is razor-sharp, sexy, and self-destructive Alaska, who has perfected the arts of pranking and evading school rules. Pudge falls impossibly in love. When tragedy strikes the close-knit group, it is only in coming face-to-face with death that Pudge discovers the value of living and loving unconditionally.
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
Call Number: CURRIC PZ4.R785 E54 2013
Set over the course of one school year in 1986, this is the story of two star-crossed misfits-smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you'll remember your own first love-and just how hard it pulled you under.

Top 10 Challenged Books of 2016

1. This One Summer written by Mariko Tamaki; illustrated by Jillian Tamaki

2. Drama written and illustrated by Raina Telgemeier

3. George written by Alex Gino

4. I Am Jazz written by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings; illustrated by Shelagh McNicholas

5. Two Boys Kissing written by David Levithan

6. Looking for Alaska written by John Green

7. Big Hard Sex Criminals written by Matt Fraction; illustrated by Chip Zdarsky

8. Make Something Up: Stories You Can't Unread written by Chuck Plahniuk

9. Little Bill (series) written by Bill Cosby; illustrated by Varnette P. Honeywood

10. Eleanor & Park written by Rainbow Rowell

- Top Ten Most Challenged Books Lists, ALA 2016