We haven’t even finished the first month of the year and 2022 is already shaping up to be one of the records in terms of questioned and banned books. I usually do a big thing during banned books week, but I don’t want to wait until September to talk about them this year. I don’t feel like I can wait, given how things are going.
It’s highly unlikely that you’ll ever lose the ability to buy banned books on your own, so part of the “while you can” title is a bit sarcastic. however, it is increasingly likely that your children will lose access to many of these novels and biographies through their school library. It’s already happened in places like Tennessee, which just banned Maus from classrooms altogether.
You are reading: Banned children’s books 2022
The best way to fight back is, of course, to buy, borrow, and read banned books. So, without further ranting from me, here are 50 Forbidden Books To Read…While You Can, starting with the top 10.
Top 10 Banned Books to Read in 2022
First, let me say that these 10 books in particular are no more or less important than the rest of the next section. I chose them because they’re the ones making headlines right now, both nationally and more quietly in small-town papers. I’ve also chosen a good mix of topics to give you a broader view of the kind of information that “book banners” don’t want you to see.
FYI, the book links below are affiliate links, so if you buy through them, I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. I embedded the kindle preview where possible (not everyone has one). many of these books are available to borrow through overdrive. if you need access, check out my post on where to get a free library card in your state that you can use online.
1. the complete maus
Let’s start with one making major headlines right now, Maus. The popular Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel about the horrors of Holocaust. As NY Times explains, “Its form, the cartoon (the Nazis are cats, the Jews mice), shocks us out of any lingering sense of familiarity and succeeds in ‘drawing us closer to the bleak heart of the Holocaust.’”
It’s currently out of stock on amazon and pretty much everywhere else. As for borrowing it, every library I have access to shows a long waiting list for it. It wasn’t even in the top 100 books until Tennessee banned it, proving that the quickest way to make sure everyone wants to read something is to tell them they can’t.
2. not all boys are blue
lgbtqia books are being banned at an alarming rate, according to a recent msnbc story (and verified simply by looking at the most recent challenged book lists). a handful of parents in my son’s district are actively trying to get this book out of the library altogether or shove it behind a counter where kids can’t see it, which is why it’s at the top of my reading list.
The book is a series of essays recounting the author’s childhood and adolescence as a queer black man in New Jersey and Virginia, as well as a “handbook for teens eager to be allies.” is available for kindle and in hardcover & pocket book on amazon
depending on your local library, you can also borrow it from overdrive. i use the philadelphia free library, and they still have like 13 copies open to lend.
3. the bluest eye
toni morrison’s heartbreaking 2007 book about an 11-year-old black girl in america who prays her eyes turn blue so people think she’s beautiful made headlines this year when a missouri school board he voted 4-5 to ban from his district.
morrison, who passed away in 2019, once said that banning books was the “kind of purist, yet elemental censorship, designed to appease adults rather than educate children.” she couldn’t agree more.
See Also: Jackie Collins: Surprisingly Few Movie Adaptations of Her Sex Bestsellers
the bluest eye is available on amazon for kindle and in hardcover & pocket book. you should also be able to find it in your library.
4. genderqueer
Just a few days ago, the Virginia senate killed a bill that would have required a signed parent permission slip to check out this book and others “that describe or depict sexual acts.” It’s also the other subject of that aforementioned effort on some parents’ part to remove access to books in our own district’s library. In fact, since its release in 2019, it’s been one of the most banned books in America period.
maia (who uses the e/em/eir pronouns) originally started the memoir as a way to explain to her parents what it meant to be non-binary. today, it is considered one of the best guides on gender identity for teens and allies alike. get it on amazon in kindle/comixology, hardcover or paperback.
5. jerry craft’s new kid
Jerry Craft’s award-winning graphic novel for middle-grade readers is a hit among kids…but not so much with parents in one Texas school district. While they’ve since put it back, the Katy Independent School District yanked the story from its shelves after a few parents complained that it “promoted Critical Race Theory and Marxism.” It doesn’t, of course. According to MSNBC, Craft actually had to look those things up to try to figure out exactly how he was teaching them to children.
The story follows Jordan, a seventh grader who attends a prestigious school where he is one of the few kids of color. From the description: “As he makes the daily commute from his Washington Heights apartment to the exclusive Riverdale Academy day school, Jordan soon finds himself torn between two worlds, and he doesn’t really fit into either. Can Jordan learn to navigate his new school culture while keeping his neighborhood friends and staying true to himself?
is available on amazon in kindle/comixology, audiobook, hardcover or paperback.
6. “Monday doesn’t come”, by Tiffany D. jackson
Don’t Come Monday is another in a long line of books by African-American authors that are being questioned or banned by parents who see critical race theory everywhere because they haven’t bothered to take five minutes to learn what what it really is.
The novel already focuses on monday’s mysterious disappearance and her best friend’s desperate attempts to find out what happened to her. jackson wrote it to shed light on missing black children.
According to a CNN report, “data shows that missing white children receive far more media coverage than missing black and brown children, despite higher rates of missing children among communities of color.”
monday’s not coming is currently free on amazon for kindle (although you may need a prime membership). You can also buy it in hardcover, paperback, and audiobook formats.
7. lawn boy by jonathan evison
lawn boy is just one of many books challenged by parents in a wake county school district. Ultimately, their application was denied and denied again after those parents appealed the board’s unanimous decision.
evison’s semi-autobiographical novel centers on mike muñoz, a young chicano living in washington state who recently lost his last job on a lawn crew. at heart, it’s a coming-of-age story, but it’s also a strong commentary on classism.
As of now, it’s available for kindle and as an audiobook. you can also get it in “library binding” format, but it is much more expensive.
8. the hate you give for angie thomas
thomas’s novel, the hate you give, made headlines this week when a school in illinois removed it from the classroom for “blasphemy”. This is not the first time that Thomas’s novel (inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement) has been questioned and, unfortunately, it probably won’t be the last.
See Also: Sherrilyn Kenyon – Book Series In Order
Like Craft’s character in New Kid, 16-year-old Starr tries to balance life in a slum while attending a posh prep school. when he sees his unarmed best friend being shot by the police, that careful balance is upset and his world collapses around him.
The Hate You Give is available on Amazon in Kindle, Audiobook, Hardcover, and Paperback.
9. thirteen reasons why by jay asher
Unlike the other books on this list, I can almost understand the logic behind defying 13 Reasons Why. At least I can empathize with him. parents are terrified that it will exalt teen suicide, that it will somehow encourage their own children to take their own lives.
here is the thing though, it’s not really about hannah (the girl who leaves her 13 reasons to kill herself behind) at all. it’s about the people she left behind and the devastating consequences of her actions. it is a book that parents should read with their teenagers instead of trying to protect them from it.
This is also available on amazon in kindle, audiobook, hardcover or paperback.
10. the hunger games
Another oft-questioned book, the Hunger Games trilogy has been banned from high schools for its perceived “insensitivity, offensive language, violence, anti-family, anti-ethics, and occult/satanic.” yes, it has some violence, but I’m not sure where they’re getting the rest.
If anything, it’s incredibly family-friendly, given that the entire series begins with Katniss volunteering to take her sister’s place to save her from certain death.
All three books are available through Kindle Unlimited, Paperback, and Hardcover.
40 most challenged & forbidden books to add to your “to read” pile
The American Library Association publishes an updated list each year around Banned Books Week. The 2021 list is not yet available, but in 2020 they tracked 156 total challenges for books and materials in libraries and schools in the United States. here are just a few, broken down by the most commonly cited reason.
challenged for “lgbtqia content”
in 2020, lgbtqia books accounted for 80% of the top 10 most banned books and remain among the most frequently questioned.
- george by alex gino
- beyond the magenta: transgender teens speak out by susan kuklin
- a day in the life of marlon bundo by marlon bundo and jill twiss
- sex is a funny word by cory silverberg
- prince & gentleman by daniel haack
- i am jazz by jessica herthel
- mommy, mommy and me by leslea newman
- 10,000 dresses by marcus ewert
- lily and dunkin – donna gephart
- wings of fire series by tui t. sutherland
disputed books by black authors
after lgbtqia issues, books by black authors are among the most frequently questioned.
- the 1619 project: a new origin story by nikole hannah-jones
- ghost boys by jewell parker rhodes
- patterned: racism, anti-racism and you by ibram x . kendi and jason reynolds
- every american boy by jason reynolds and brendan kiely
- walter dean myers monster
- something happened in our town: a children’s story about race injustice by marianne celano, marietta collins and ann hazzard
- the new jim crow: mass incarceration in the age of color blindness by michelle alexander
- the poet x by elizabeth acevedo
- kwame alexander’s undefeated
- i know why maya angelou’s caged bird sings
accused of “vulgarity”, “profanity” and “sexually explicit content”
- margaret atwood’s handmaid’s tale
- laurie halse anderson speech (also banned due to “political agenda” and bias against men)
- this summer of mariko tamaki
- snow, glass, apples by neil gaiman
- an abundance of katherines by john green
- robert cormier’s chocolate wars
- drama by raina telgemeier
- ask alice from anonymous
- forever by judy blume
- seeking alaska by john green
challenged on the grounds of “occult issues”, “witchcraft” and “religious point of view”
- jk rowling’s harry potter series
- his dark materials by philip pullman
- mark haddon’s curious incident of the dog at midnight</li
- a wrinkle in time by madeleine l’engle
- carrie by stephen king
- house of night series by p.c. and kristin chose
- twilight sage by stephanie meyer
- goosebumps series by r. i stine
- a light in the attic by shel silverstein
- are you there god? it’s me, margaret by judy blume
There are dozens of other “reasons” given by people who challenge the books, these are just a few of the most common. If you’re interested in more banned books, Marshall University has an excellent list along with ample reasons behind each challenge. I also used this one from the pikes peak library district for reference.
last updated on 2022-09-01/affiliate links/amazon product advertising api images
See Also: Little Golden Books through the decades – Penguin Books New Zealand