Banned Books Week

September 18th—September 24th

Launching in the 1980s, Banned Books Week celebrates the right and freedom to read books devoid of censorship. Below are some of the banned books. You will be surprised to find some of your favorite literary works that have been on the banned list, and you may be even more surprised to see why they were banned in the first place.

1. Catcher in the Rye—J.D. Salinger (profanity, sexual themes, religious defamation)

2. The Grapes of Wrath—John Steinbeck (profanity, religious defamation)

3. To Kill a Mockingbird—Harper Lee (racial themes, profanity)

4. The Color Purple—Alice Walker (profanity, racial themes, sexual themes)

5. Beloved—Toni Morrison (violence, sexual themes, racial themes)

6. The Bluest Eye—Toni Morrison (sexual themes, racial themes)

7. Lord of the Flies—William Golding (violence, profanity, sexual themes, religious defamation)

8. 1984—George Orwell (promoting Communism, sexual themes)

9. Animal Farm—George Orwell (promoting Communism, indecent images)

10. Catch 22—Joseph Heller (sexual themes)

11. Brave New World—Aldous Huxley (religious defamation, defamation of American values, sexual themes)

12. Their Eyes Were Watching God—Zora Neale Hurston (profanity, sexual themes)

13. The Invisible Man—Ralph Ellison (profanity, sexual themes)

14. Native Son—Richard Wright (violence, profanity, sexual themes)

15. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest—Ken Kesey (violence, promotes criminal activity, profanity)

16. Slaughterhouse Five—Kurt Vonnegut (religious defamation, profanity, sexual themes)

17. Go Tell it On the Mountain—James Baldwin (sexual themes, rape)

18. The Harry Potter series—J.K. Rowling (promoting witchcraft )

19. The Awakening—Kate Chopin (profanity, sexual themes)

20. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings—Maya Angelou (profanity, violence, sexual themes, rape)

21. Maus— (nudity, sexual themes, disturbing imagery, profanity)

22. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn—Mark Twain (profanity, racial themes)

23. The Captain Underpants series—Dav Pilkey (promotes disruptive behavior in children)

24. The Perks of Being a Wallflower—Stephen Chbosky (drug use, sexual themes, promotes homosexuality, profanity)

25. The Hunger Games series—Suzanne Collins (violence, religious defamation)

26. His Dark Materials series—Phillip Pillman (religious defamation)

27. The Kite Runner—Khaled Hosseini (profanity, violence, promotes homosexuality)

28. The Hate U Give—Angie Thomas (profanity, drug use, defamation of police)

29. The Handmaid’s Tale—Margaret Atwood (profanity, violence, sexual themes, rape)

30. Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You—Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds (public author statements)

31. All American Boys—Jason Reynolds (defamation of police, drug use, profanity)

32. The Fault in Our Stars—John Green (sexual content, profanity)