Banned Books Week: Top 10 Challenged Books in 2011

Of the 326 titles challenged in 2011, the following books were in the Top 10 as reported by the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom:

1. ttyl; ttfn; l8r, g8r (series), by Lauren Myracle
   Reasons: offensive language; religious viewpoint; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group
2. The Color of Earth (series), by Kim Dong Hwa
   Reasons: nudity; sex education; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group
3. The Hunger Games trilogy, by Suzanne Collins
   Reasons: anti-ethnic; anti-family; insensitivity; offensive language; occult/satanic; violence
4. My Mom's Having A Baby! A Kid's Month-by-Month Guide to Pregnancy, by Dori Hillestad Butler
   Reasons: nudity; sex education; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group
5. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie
   Reasons: offensive language; racism; religious viewpoint; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group
6. Alice (series), by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
   Reasons: nudity; offensive language; religious viewpoint
7. Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
   Reasons: insensitivity; nudity; racism; religious viewpoint; sexually explicit
8.  What My Mother Doesn't Know, by Sonya Sones
   Reasons: nudity; offensive language; sexually explicit
9. Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily Von Ziegesar
   Reasons: drugs; offensive language; sexually explicit 
10. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
    Reasons: offensive language; racism

Want to know about more other books which have been subjected to challenges such as the Harry Potter series, Catcher in the Rye, or The Color Purple?   Find the most challenged books in the 21st Century here. 

For more specific information about book challenges since 2004-2005 (i.e. the who, what, when, where and whys), see the Yearly Lists of Challenged and/or Banned Books here (bottom of page). 

Banned Books Week 30th Anniversary begins Sunday, 9/30/12

Sunday, September 30, 2012 marks the thirtieth anniversary of Banned Books Week!

Sponsored by the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, and many other organizations, Banned Books Week  is an annual celebration of the freedom to read and of individual expression.  It is also an opportunity to bring attention to the challenges to and restriction attempts of materials in libraries and bookstores across the nation. 

Members of the book community, including librarians, teachers, booksellers, comic book artists and journalists come together each year to advocate against censorship and the free expression of ideas. This year, renowned journalist Bill Moyers was named honorary co-chair of Banned Books Week and has produced a video in honor of its 30th anniversary and importance.  


Bill Moyers on Banned Books Week from BillMoyers.com on Vimeo.

Be sure to stop the Library and see our Banned Book Week display near the entrance.  Banned Books Week buttons and bookmarks will be available in the Library beginning Monday October 1 at Noon.  Quantities are limited, so be sure to come early! For more information on Banned Books week, go here. 

Celebrate your freedom to read!

Banned Books Week @ the Library, Sept 25 through Oct 2

Each year, the American Library Association promotes Banned Books Week, a week-long event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment. This year, Banned Books week is September 25 through October 2.

Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.

Stop by the Library during Banned Books Week and pick up bookmarks and buttons showing your support of the freedom to read. Quantities are limited, so come early! Check out our display near the Library entrance to see a selection of books which have been challenged or banned in libraries-you might just be surprised!

Banned Books Week Read Out!

Join the American Library Association as they celebrate Banned Books Week by sponsoring a Read-Out on Saturday, September 25, 2010, from noon to 2:00 PM, in historic Bughouse Square (Washington Square Park), 901 N. Clark St., Chicago.

The Read-Out is an annual event to bring attention to books that have been banned and challenged in the United States. ALA President Roberta Stevens will welcome critically acclaimed and censored young adult author, Chris Crutcher, host of the event. Admission is FREE.

Some of the authors featured on the ten most frequently challenged books of 2009 will read from their work and share their experiences as targets of censors. The readings begin at noon and will be followed by book signings by all the authors in attendance from 2:00 to 3:00 PM.

A limited number of books will be given away for free to participating audience members.

Attendees

Confirmed censored authors:

Lauren Myracle (ttyl, ttfn, l8r g8r of the Internet Girl Series)

Tentatively scheduled censored authors:
Stephen Chbosky (Perks of Being a Wallflower)
Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell (And Tango Makes Three).

Local Chicago celebrities:

Rick Kogan, WGN's Sunday Papers
Elizabeth Taylor, Chicago Tribune

Performances by City Lit Theater Company

Sponsors

The American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom, the McCormick Foundation Civics Program, and the Newberry Library are proud to continue to sponsor this event.

Banned Books Week

Banned Books Week is the only national celebration of the freedom to read. It was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in schools, bookstores and libraries. More than a thousand books have been challenged since 1982. The challenges have occurred in every state and in hundreds of communities. Click here to see a map of book bans and challenges in the US from 2007 to 2009. People challenge books that they say are too sexual or too violent. They object to profanity and slang, and protest against offensive portrayals of racial or religious groups--or positive portrayals of homosexuals. Their targets range from books that explore the latest problems to classic and beloved works of American literature.

During the last week of September every year, hundreds of libraries and bookstores around the country draw attention to the problem of censorship by mounting displays of challenged books and hosting a variety of events. The 2009 celebration of Banned Books Week will be held from September 26 through October 3.



The 10 most challenged titles in 2008 were:

And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
Reasons: anti-ethnic, anti-family, homosexuality, religious viewpoint,
and unsuited to age group



His Dark Materials trilogy, by Philip Pullman
Reasons: political viewpoint, religious viewpoint, and violence




TTYL; TTFN; L8R, G8R (series), by Lauren Myracle
Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit, and unsuited to age
group



Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz
Reasons: occult/satanism, religious viewpoint, and violence




Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya
Reasons: occult/satanism, offensive language, religious viewpoint,
sexually explicit, and violence



The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
Reasons: drugs, homosexuality, nudity, offensive language, sexually
explicit, suicide, and unsuited to age group



Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily von Ziegesar
Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit, and unsuited to age
group



Uncle Bobby's Wedding, by Sarah S. Brannen
Reasons: homosexuality and unsuited to age group



The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit, and unsuited to age group




Flashcards of My Life, by Charise Mericle Harper
Reasons: sexually explicit and unsuited to age group




Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Library Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the Association of American Publishers, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, and the National Association of College Stores. Banned Books Week is also endorsed by the Center for the Book of the Library of Congress.