Banned Books Week (October 1-7, 2023) celebrates the freedom to read and draws attention to attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. The Gustavus Library endorses the American Library Association’s Freedom to Read Statement affirming that “the freedom to read is essential to our democracy” and that librarians should “make available the widest diversity of views and expressions.”
You’ll find the Top 13 Most Challenged Books of 2022 in our Banned Books Week Display on the main floor of the library – we encourage you to borrow any of them!
Top 13 Most Challenged Books of 2022
- Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe
Challenged for: LGBTQIA+ content, claimed to be sexually explicit - All Boys Aren’t Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto by George M. Johnson
Challenged for: LGBTQIA+ content, claimed to be sexually explicit - The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
Challenged for: depiction of sexual abuse, EDI content, claimed to be sexually explicit - Flamer by Mike Curato
Challenged for: LGBTQIA+ content, claimed to be sexually explicit - (tie) Looking for Alaska by John Green
Challenged for: LGBTQIA+ content, claimed to be sexually explicit - (tie) The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Challenged for: depiction of sexual abuse, LGBTQIA+ content, drug use, profanity, claimed to be sexually explicit - Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison
Challenged for: LGBTQIA+ content, claimed to be sexually explicit - The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Challenged for: profanity, claimed to be sexually explicit - Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez
Challenged for: depictions of abuse, claimed to be sexually explicit - (tie) A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
Challenged for: claimed to be sexually explicit - (tie) Crank by Ellen Hopkins
Challenged for: drug use, claimed to be sexually explicit - (tie) Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
Challenged for: profanity, claimed to be sexually explicit - (tie) This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson
Challenged for: LGBTQIA+ content, providing sexual education, claimed to be sexually explicit
Looking for more information? Contact a Librarian