A record-breaking 4,240 unique book titles were targeted for censorship in 2023. Last year Unite Against Book Bans established a day for readers, library lovers, and advocates everywhere to stand up to censorship as part of a national day of action -- Right to Read Day, and thousands answered the call. Let’s do it again! Because the book banners are definitely still at it. For statistics to share, a guide to get you organized, and a toolkit to get you started - click on the post's title.
We're over the moon about the first ever Eleanor Roosevelt Banned Book Awards Ceremony! The event celebrates the inaugural winners of the Eleanor Roosevelt Award for Bravery in Literature, recognizing authors whose works focus on racial justice, LGBTQIA rights, and gender equity. To find out who is being honored, and which books have been identified as advancing human rights - click on the post's title.
What actually happens when young people read “disturbing” books? Literary scholars Gay Ivey and Peter Johnston have studied this at length. And it's not the baloney banners spout to scare you. To discover the very real benefits - click on the post's title.
Dave Eggers' book The Circle was not only pulled from high school reading lists in Rapid City, South Dakota, it was on a list with several other books school officials decided should be destroyed. Yes destroyed. Eggers graciously gave This Book is Banned permission to publish a link to the following article he wrote about his experience with book banning. Be sure to give it a read - click on the post's title.
The New York Public Library is offering free nationwide digital access to young adult books that've been the object of bans or challenges. Not to mention author talks and the Teen Banned Book Club, so you can join the conversation. To leap into this post to get started - click on the post's title.
Banned Book Club was removed from school libraries in Florida. To check out our conversation with author Ryan Estrada about the dangers of book banning - click on the post's title.
Literature is an excellent resource for school programs that address bullying. But not if books with themes of bullying behavior are banned. To peruse this list of books that address bullying - click on the post's title.
Did you know Anne Frank planned to write a book about her time in hiding after the war? What event inspired her wish? And how did her writings merge into the text we have today? To find out - click on the post's title.
Banned due to the social issues it addresses, Sandra Cisneros' work tells the culturally significant story of Esperanza as she comes of age in the Hispanic quarter of Chicago. To dive into this deep reading of Cisneros' The House on Mango Street - click on the post's title.
Hispanic Heritage Month takes place every year from September 15th to October 15th. Celebrate with a banned book by a Hispanic author. To check out our list - click on the post's title.
Thomas Morton’s blistering satire The New English Canaan was the first book to be banned in the United States. The Perfect choice for Right to Read Day. To get it free - click on the post's title.