Banned Books Week has been around my entire life, and at almost 43 years old, I can’t imagine where I’d be without some of the books I read during my own coming-of-age. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky helped me understand that I would never be happy if I stayed in a situation where I couldn’t be myself. A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (required reading in my sophomore honors English class, by the way) taught me the dangers of forced conformity and what happens when humanity is distilled into banality.
Book bans are about more than just removing books from shelves; they’re about cutting off access to stories that help us see the world—and sometimes ourselves—differently. The American Library Association (ALA) and PEN America show just how much this is still happening. In the first eight months of 2024, the ALA tracked 414 attempts to ban 1,128 different books. That’s down from last year, but it’s still way up compared to a few years ago—and these numbers probably don’t capture the whole picture. We’re also seeing “soft censorship,” where books are quietly hidden, left out of displays, or just never ordered in the first place because someone’s afraid of backlash.
PEN America’s numbers paint an even more alarming picture: over 10,000 books banned during the 2023-2024 school year, more than triple the amount from the year before. A lot of these bans are happening in states like Florida and Iowa, where new laws are cracking down on what books students can read. And with even more restrictive laws on the horizon in places like Utah, South Carolina, and Tennessee, this isn’t going away anytime soon.
This hits students the hardest. When we ban books, we’re taking away their chance to see a new perspective or find comfort in a character who’s just like them. Stories about race, gender, mental health, or just growing up are getting pulled from shelves because they make some people uncomfortable. But that’s exactly why they’re needed. Kids need to see that their struggles aren’t unique or shameful—and that they aren’t alone.
Author Sandra Cisneros put it perfectly: “Books are good medicine. And if this one isn’t your prescription, you just put it back on the shelf for someone who needs it. That’s why we have libraries, with so many prescriptions, so you take what you need.” Libraries should be places where everyone finds something that speaks to them, without someone else deciding it’s “too much” for them to handle.
Looking at the list of the 100 most challenged books between 2019 and 2024, I’m shocked by the lessons people are willing to deny others just because they don’t fit the status quo. The Color Purple? I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings? Ender’s Game? A Clockwork Orange and 1984? Monster? A Child Called It? Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl? The Giver? Beloved? Huckleberry Finn? And sure, I don’t find much personal value in 50 Shades of Grey—but that makes me wonder, why aren’t we seeing calls to ban the movies based on these books, too? Are words on a page somehow more dangerous than images on a screen?
As we gear up for Banned Books Week, it’s a good time to remember that this fight isn’t just about keeping books on shelves—it’s about protecting our right to read, think, and discover for ourselves.
Want to get involved? Check out your local library’s events, support your teachers and librarians who are on the front lines, or just pick up a banned book and see for yourself what the fuss is about. Talk to your friends, write to your local reps, or donate to groups like the ALA or PEN America that are fighting these battles every day.