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Banned Books

Banned Books

Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read is observed during the last week of September each year. Observed since 1982, this annual event reminds Americans not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted. Banned Books Week emphasizes the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish to read them.

More information about Banned Books Week is available at http://www.ala.org/bbooks/.

MOST CHALLENGED BOOKS of the 21ST CENTURY (2000-2007)

  1. Harry Potter series. J.K. Rowling. Y Fic ROW, J ROW, Large Type Fic ROW, Spanish Lang. Fic ROW, CD Fic ROW, Y AUDIO CD ROW, J AUDIO CD ROW, J AUDIO Cassette ROW, Spanish Lang. CD Fic ROW, DVD Sci. Fic H, VIDEO Sci. Fic H
  2. The chocolate war. Robert Cormier. Y Fic COR, Y AUDIO CD COR, Y AUDIO Cassette COR
  3. Alice series. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. Y Fic NAY, J NAY
  4. Of mice and men. John Steinbeck. Fic STE, Y Fic STE, CD Fic STE, , DVD Drama O
  5. I know why the caged bird sings. Maya Angelou. B Angelou, Y 928 ANG
  6. Scary stories series. Alvin Schwartz. J 398.2 SCH, J 398.25 SCH, J AUDIO Cassette 398.25 SCH
  7. Fallen angels. Walter Dean Myers. Fic MYE
  8. It’s perfectly normal: a book about changing bodies, growing up, sex, and sexual health. Robie H. Harris. 613.907 HAR, Y 613.907 HAR, Spanish Lang. 613.951 HAR
  9. And Tango makes three. Justin Richardson, Peter Parnell. Pic RIC Parenting
  10. Captain Underpants series. Dav Pilkey. J PIL, Sp. Lang. J PIL

BOOKS CHALLENGED OR BANNED 2008-09

  • The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian. Sherman Alexie. Y Fic ALE, Large Type Fic ALE, J ALE, Y AUDIO CD ALE
  • Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain. Fic TWA, J TWA, Spanish Lang. Fic TWA, CD Fic TWA, Y AUDIO CD TWA, Audio Fic TWA, DVD Action Adv, DVD Children, VIDEO Action Adv
  • The Amulet of Samarkand. Jonathan Stroud. Y Fic STR, Y AUDIO Cassette STR
  • Angus, thongs and full-frontal snogging: confessions of Georgia Nicolson. Louise Rennison. Y Fic REN, Y AUDIO CD REN
  • Black Hawk down: a story of modern war. Mark Bowden. 967.7305 BOW
  • Bless me, Ultima. Rudolfo A. Anaya. Fic ANA, SpanishLang.Fic,CDFic,SpanishLang.AudioFic
  • The bluest eye. Toni Morrison. Fic MOR, Audio
  • The book of bunny suicides. Andy Riley. Y 741.5 RIL
  • The bookseller of Kabul. Asne Seierstad. 958.104 SEI
  • Theboybook:astudyofhabitsandbehaviors,plus techniques for taming them. E. Lockhart. Y Fic LOC
  • Brave New World. Aldous Huxley. Fic HUX, CD Fic HUX
  • The catcher in the rye. J.D. Salinger. Fic SAL, Y Fic SAL
  • Child of the dark prophecy. T.A. Barron. Y Fic BAR
  • Chinese handcuffs. Chris Crutcher. Y Fic CRU
  • The color purple. Alice Walker. Fic WAL, Y Fic WAL, DVD Drama C, VIDEO Drama
  • Deal with it!: a whole new approach to your body, brain, and life as a gurl. Esther Drill. 305.235 DRI
  • Thefightingground. Avi. J AVI, J AUDIO Cassette
  • Geography Club. Brent Hartinger. Y Fic HAR
  • Girl, interrupted. Susanna Kaysen. 616.89 KAY, Audio 616.89 KAY
  • A girl’s life online. Katherine Tarbox. Y 362.7 TAR
  • The golden compass. Philip Pullman. Y Fic PUL, Large Type Fic, Spanish Lang. Fic, Y AUDIO CD, Y AUDIO Cassette PUL, DVD Sci. Fic G
  • The golem’s eye. Jonathan Stroud. Y Fic STR, Y AUDIO Cassette STR
  • Grendel. John Gardner. Fic GAR, Y Fic, CD Fic
  • Hoops. Walter Dean Myers. Y Fic MYE
  • In country. Bobbie Ann Mason. Fic MAS
  • The kite runner. Khaled Hosseini. Fic HOS, Large Type Fic HOS, CD Fic HOS, DVD Drama K
  • The land. Mildred D. Taylor. J TAY, J AUDIO Cassette TAY
  • Looking for Alaska. John Green. Y Fic GRE, Y AUDIO CD GRE
  • The lovely bones. Alice Sebold. Fic SEB, Y Fic SEB, Large Type Fic SEB, Spanish Lang. Fic SEB, CD Fic SEB
  • Midnight in the garden of good and evil: a Savannah story. John Berendt. 975.872 BER
  • My brother Sam is dead. James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier. J COL
  • My sister’s keeper. Jodi Picoult. Fic PIC, Y Fic PIC, Spanish Lang. Fic PIC, Audio Fic PIC
  • Nineteen minutes. Jodi Picoult. Fic PIC
  • Notre Dame vs. The Klan: how the fighting Irish defeated the Ku Klux Klan. Todd Tucker. 378.77 TUC
  • A people’s history of the United States: 1492-present. Howard Zinn. 973 ZIN, Spanish Lang. 973 ZIN, CD 973 ZIN
  • The perks of being a wallflower. Stephen Chbosky. Fic CHB
  • Pillars of the earth. Ken Follett. Fic FOL, Spanish Lang. Fic FOL, CD Fic FOL
  • Prep. Curtis Sittenfeld. Y Fic SIT, Y AUDIO CD
  • Ptolemy’s gate. Jonathan Stroud. Y Fic STR, Y AUDIO CD STR
  • The Supernaturalist. Eoin Colfer. Y Fic COL, Large Type Fic COL, Y AUDIO Cassette COL
  • To kill a mockingbird. Harper Lee. Fic LEE, Y Fic LEE, Large Type Fic LEE, Spanish Lang. Fic LEE, CD Fic LEE, Audio Fic LEE, DVD Drama T, VIDEO Drama T, VIDEO Descriptive T
  • Ttfn. Lauren Myracle. Y Fic MYR
  • Ttyl. Lauren Myracle. Y Fic MYR
  • Twilight series. Stephenie Meyer. Y Fic MEY, Large Type Fic MEY, Spanish Lang. Fic MEY, CD Fic MEY, Y AUDIO CD MEY, DVD Drama T
  • Whispers from the dead. Joan Lowery Nixon. Y Fic NIX
  • Wicked: the life and times of the wicked witch of the West. Gregory Maguire. Fic MAG, Spanish Lang. Fic MAG, CD Fic MAG

OTHER FREQUENTLY CHALLENGED BOOKS

  • The adventures of Tom Sawyer. Mark Twain. Fic TWA, Y Fic, J TWA, Spanish Lang. Fic, CD Fic
  • Always running: La Vida Loca, gang days in L.A. Luis J. Rodríguez. B Rodríguez, Spanish Lang. B
  • Anastasia Krupnik series. Lois Lowry. J LOW, J Paperback, J AUDIO CD LOW
  • Annie on my mind. Nancy Garden. Y Fic GAR
  • Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret. Judy Blume. J BLU, Sp. Lang. J BLU, J AUDIO CD BLU
  • Beloved: a novel. Toni Morrison. Fic MOR, Large Type Fic MOR, CD Fic MOR, Audio Fic MOR
  • Blubber. Judy Blume. LargeTypeFicBLU,JBLU
  • The boy who lost his face. Louis Sachar. J SAC
  • Bridge to Terabithia. Katherine Paterson. Large Type Fic PAT, J PAT Newbery, Sp. Lang. J, J AUDIO CD, J AUDIO Cassette, DVD Drama B
  • Carrie. Stephen King. Y Fic KIN, Spanish Lang. Fic KIN, CD Fic KIN
  • Christine. Stephen King. Fic KIN
  • Cujo. Stephen King. Fic KIN, Spanish Lang. Fic
  • A day no pigs would die. Robert Newton Peck. Fic PEC, Y AUDIO Cassette PEC
  • The dead zone. Stephen King. Fic KIN
  • Deenie. Judy Blume. J BLU, J Paperback
  • Detour for Emmy. Marilyn Reynolds. Y Fic REY
  • The drowning of Stephan Jones. Bette Greene. Y Fic GRE
  • Earth’s children series. Jean M. Auel. Fic AUE, Large Type Fic, Spanish Lang. Fic, CD Fic, Audio
  • The face on the milk carton. Caroline B. Cooney. Y Fic COO, J COO,JAUDIOCD,JAUDIOCassette
  • Fade. Robert Cormier. Y Fic COR
  • Final exit. Derek Humphry. 362.28 HUM
  • Flowers for Algernon. Daniel Keyes. Fic KEY, YAUDIOCassetteKEY,DVDDrama,VIDEODrama
  • Forever…: a novel. Judy Blume. Fic BLU
  • The Giver. Lois Lowry. Y Fic LOW, J LOW Newbery, Sp. Lang. J LOW, J AUDIO CD LOW
  • The goats. Brock Cole. Y Fic COL
  • Goosebumps series. R.L. Stine. J STI, Sp. Lang.
  • The great Gilly Hopkins. Katherine Paterson. J PAT, J AUDIO CD PAT, Spanish Lang. Fic PAT
  • HalloweenABC:poems. Eve Merriam. J 811 MER
  • The handmaid’s tale. Margaret Atwood. Fic ATW
  • TheheadlessCupid. Zilpha Keatley Snyder. JSNY
  • The house of the spirits. Isabel Allende. Fic ALL, Spanish Lang. Fic ALL
  • Howtoeatfriedworms. Thomas Rockwell. JROC, J Paperback, J AUDIO CD ROC, DVD Comedy H
  • In the night kitchen. Maurice Sendak. PIC SEN, Sp. Lang. Pic SEN
  • It’s so amazing!: a book about eggs, sperm, birth, babies, and families. Robie H. Harris. J 612.6 HAR, Sp. Lang. J 612.6 HAR
  • Jack. A.M. Homes. Y Fic HOM
  • James and the giant peach. Roald Dahl. J DAH, J Paperback Spanish, DVD Sci. Fic J
  • Julie of the wolves. Jean Craighead George. J GEO Newbery, J AUDIO CD GEO, Sp. Lang. J
  • Jumper. Steven Gould. Y Fic GOU
  • Kaffir boy: the true story of a Black youth’s coming of age in Apartheid South Africa. Mark Mathabane. B Mathabane, Audio B Mathabane
  • Killing Mr. Griffin. Lois Duncan. Y Fic DUN
  • A light in the attic. Shel Silverstein. J 811 SIL, Sp. Lang. J 811 SIL, J AUDIO CD 811 SIL
  • Lolita. Vladimir Nabokov. Fic NAB
  • Lord of the flies. William Golding. Fic GOL, Y Fic, CD,YAUDIOCD,YAUDIOCassette,DVDActionAdv
  • Mommy laid an egg!: or where do babies come from? Babette Cole. J 649.65 COL
  • Native son. Richard Wright. Fic WRI, Spanish Lang. Fic WRI
  • On my honor. Marion Dane Bauer. J BAU, J AUDIO CD BAU
  • Ordinary people. Judith Guest. Fic GUE, Large Type Fic GUE
  • The outsiders. S.E. Hinton. Y Fic HIN, CD Fic HIN, Spanish Lang. Fic HIN, DVD Drama
  • The pigman. Paul Zindel. Y Fic ZIN
  • Slaughterhouse-five. Kurt Vonnegut. Fic VON, Y Fic VON, CD Fic VON
  • Song of Solomon. Toni Morrison. Fic MOR
  • Summer of my German soldier. Bette Greene. Y Fic GRE
  • The terrorist. Caroline B. Cooney. Y Fic COO
  • Tiger eyes. Judy Blume. J BLU
  • The view from the cherry tree. Willo Davis Roberts. J ROB
  • We all fall down. Robert Cormier. Y Fic COR
  • Whale talk. Chris Crutcher. Y Fic CRU, Large Type Fic CRU, Y AUDIO Cassette CRU
  • What my mother doesn’t know. Sonya Sones. Y 811 SON
  • The what’s happening to my body? book for boys. Lynda Madaras. 612.661 MAD
  • The what’s happening to my body? book for girls. Lynda Madaras. 612.661 MAD, Y 612.661 MAD, J 612.66 MAD, Spanish Lang. 612.66 MAD
  • Where’s Waldo? Martin Handford. Pic HAN
  • The wish giver: three tales of Coven Tree. Bill Brittain. J BRI
  • The witches. Roald Dahl. J DAH, J Paperback, J AUDIO CD DAH, DVD Sci. Fic W
  • A wrinkle in time. Madeleine L’Engle. J LEN Newbery, Sp. Lang. J LEN, J AUDIO CD LEN, J AUDIO Cassette LEN, DVD Sci. Fic W

Of the Modern Library’s Best 100 Novels of the Twentieth Century, 34 have been banned or challenged at some time in their printed life, including:

  • Ulysses. James Joyce. Fic JOY, Audio Fic JOY
  • The great Gatsby. F. Scott Fitzgerald. Fic FIT, CD Fic FIT, Y AUDIO CD FIT, DVD Drama
  • Catch-22. Joseph Heller. Fic HEL, Spanish Lang. Fic HEL, CD Fic HEL
  • Sons and lovers. D.H. Lawrence. Fic LAW
  • The grapes of wrath. John Steinbeck. Fic STE, SpanishLang.Fic,AudioFic,DVDDramaG,VIDEO
  • 1984. George Orwell. Fic ORW, CD Fic ORW
  • I, Claudius: from the autobiography of Tiberius Claudius, born B.C. X, murdered and deified A.D. LIV. Robert Graves. Fic GRA, DVD Drama I
  • An American tragedy. Theodore Dreiser. Fic DRE, VIDEO Drama
  • Invisible man. Ralph Ellison. Fic ELL, Y Fic ELL
  • StudsLonigan:atrilogy. James T. Farrell. Fic FAR
  • Sister Carrie. Theodore Dreiser. Fic DRE, DVD Drama C
  • As I lay dying. William Faulkner. Fic FAU
  • Alltheking’smen. Robert Penn Warren. FicWAR, CD Fic WAR, DVD Drama A, VIDEO Drama A
  • Gotellitonthemountain. James Baldwin. FicBAL
  • Deliverance. James Dickey. Fic DIC
  • The sun also rises. Ernest Hemingway. Fic HEM, Audio Fic HEM
  • The rainbow. D.H. Lawrence. Fic LAW
  • Women in love. D.H. Lawrence. Fic LAW
  • The naked and the dead. Norman Mailer. FicMAI
  • Portnoy’s complaint. Philip Roth. Fic ROT
  • From here to eternity. James Jones. Fic JON, DVD Drama F, VIDEO Drama
  • A clockwork orange. Anthony Burgess. Fic BUR, CD Fic BUR