17 of America's most surprising banned books (2024)

FAQs

What is the 1 most banned book in America? ›

What Is the Most Banned Book in America? For all time, the most frequently banned book is 1984 by George Orwell.

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

She ultimately saves Wilbur before her naturally short lifespan comes to an end. Due to themes of death and the fact that the main characters are talking animals, a parent group in Kansas sought to ban the book from their students' school libraries.

The Lorax by Dr.

Dr. Seuss' environmental kid's book was banned in 1989 in a California school because it was believed to portray logging in a poor light and would turn children against the foresting industry.

The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Challenged at the Baptist College in Charleston, SC (1987) because of "language and sexual references in the book.

Seuss's Green Eggs and Ham was banned in Maoist China in 1965. What was the reason? Apparently, it portrayed Marxism in a bad light by showing the Sam-I-Am character force his possessions (green eggs and ham) onto someone else. The ban was not lifted until Seuss' death in 1991.

Bridge to Terabithia is a realistic fiction book by Katherine Paterson. It is a story about friendship and learning how to be yourself. Since its publication in 1977, some groups have banned the book. They do not like the way the book talks about death, religion, and fantasy.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. Why: A Colorado library banned the book because it embraced a “poor philosophy of life.” Additionally, since its publication in 1964, the book was under fire for comparing the Oompa Loompas to Africans.

To ban a book is to ban creativity. The following books are the top 4 banned books of all time: The Bible Book Buttons Embed ISBN: 9780529124586 The American Library Association recently released a study showing that the Bible has become the most banned book for the … Banning books is a weird thing.

The American Library Association states that The Catcher in the Rye has been banned by schools and public libraries for having “excess vulgar language, sexual scenes, things concerning moral issues, excessive violence and anything dealing with the occult” and “communism,” among other things.

Why is Animal Farm banned? ›

There are many places in the world where George Orwell's satire Animal Farm has been banned. To say that the United States is not one of these places is an understatement. The book was misunderstood and was seen as being critical of all forms of socialism, rather than specifically Stalinist communism.

There have been different reasons for the book being banned, including religious objections, hom*osexuality, violence, African history, rape, incest, drug abuse, explicit language, and sexual scenes.

Huckleberry Finn banned immediately after publication

Immediately after publication, the book was banned on the recommendation of public commissioners in Concord, Massachusetts, who described it as racist, coarse, trashy, inelegant, irreligious, obsolete, inaccurate, and mindless.

Orwell's ''1984'' was published in 1949 as a warning against totalitarianism and it was banned in the Soviet Union until 1988, a report by news agency Reuters said.

It is written by Roald Dahl. James and the Giant Peach has been banned repeatedly because of references to alcohol, drugs, violence, and suspicious behavior.

The Junie B. Jones series came in at #71 on the American Library Association's list of the Top 100 Banned or Challenged Books from 2000 to 2009. Reasons cited are "poor social values taught by the books, and Junie B. Jones not being considered a good role model due to her mouthiness, bad spelling, and grammar."

After parent complaints about the use of racist epithets in To Kill a Mockingbird; Adventures of Huckleberry Finn; The Cay; Of Mice and Men; and Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, the Burbank (CA) Unified School District superintendent removed these titles from required classroom reading lists.

"The Handmaid's Tale" was among titles targeted for sexual or health-related content, while a "disproportionate" number of bans focused on stories relating to LGBTQ+ people and people of color, according to PEN America.

The top three challenges included age inappropriate material, sexually explicit content, and offensive language. One school located outside of Chicago upheld the removal of The Kite Runner from its English curriculum because parents objected to the the assigning of the controversial book to sophom*ore honors students.

Upon its release, Fahrenheit 451 was a critical success, although polarized some critics. The novel's subject matter led to its censorship in apartheid South Africa and various schools in the United States.

Why is Uncle Tom's Cabin banned? ›

In 1851, Harriet Beecher Stowe agreed to "paint a word picture of slavery" for an abolitionist newspaper. Her story, Uncle Tom's Cabin, became an instant bestseller—and drew the ire of Southern slaveholders, who burned copies and banned it from bookshelves. Please be respectful of copyright.

The book was reprinted and re-released in 1866. By 1884, 100,000 copies had been printed. In 1931, the work was banned in China by the Governor of Huan Province on the grounds that “Animals should not use human language, and…it [is] disastrous to put animals and human beings on the same level.”

This book was banned due to the author's name. Brown Bear, Brown Bear was banned when The Texas State Board of Education accidentally mixed up its author Bill Martin Jr. with Bill Martin author of Ethical Marxism: The Categorical Imperative of Liberation.

In Gary Paulsen's adventure story Hatchet, a teenage boy struggles to survive in the Canadian wilderness after a plane crash. The Newbery Honor book was challenged for graphic descriptions of trauma and injury.

Since its publication in 1962, A Wrinkle in Time has become one of the mostfrequently banned or challenged books, for multiple reasons. People have argued that it's too complicated for children, and earlier critics disapproved of its plucky female protagonist.

The famous Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling was banned on multiple occasions. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was published in 1997. In 2001, the book was banned because of ”satanism and anti-family themes.” In 2002-2004, the book was banned for its focus on wizardry and magic.

About the book: A young boy grows to manhood and old age experiencing the love and generosity of a tree which gives to him without thought of return. About the ban: In 1988, the book was banned from a Colorado public library, who argued that the book was sexist.

This installment in the wildly popular frontier series by real-life pioneer Wilder was banned from a South Dakota classroom because of comments the characters in the book made about Native Americans.

In the early 2000s, “Goodnight Moon” was under fire again because in a picture on the back of the book the illustrator, Clement Hurd, is holding a cigarette. HarperCollins, the publisher, and Hurd's son together decided to digitally remove the cigarette because they said it promoted smoking to children.

Under Chinese law, it is illegal to bring printed religious material into the country if it exceeds the amount for personal use. The group distributes the Bibles through a local shop owner in Kunming, according to Klein.

Who was killed for translating the Bible into English? ›

In May 1536, Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII, was convicted of adultery and beheaded. Five months later, accused heretic and English Bible translator William Tyndale was strangled and burned at the stake.

In some, mostly Muslim states, censorship of the Bible exists today, such as in Saudi Arabia where the distribution of non-Muslim religious materials such as Bibles is illegal. Afghan Christians practice in secret. Bibles are not sold publicly. Importing & distributing Bibles is illegal, as is evangelism.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck has been banned countless times. This Depression-era tragic tale that was praised for its realism is regularly found in the top one hundred of the banned book list published by the American Library Association because of racial slurs, profanity, vulgarity, and offensive language.

School boards and parent-teacher associations have been hostile toward the novel because of Holden's profanity-laden speech and his sexual adventures following his expulsion from prep school. These include an episode with a pimp and a prostitute (with whom Holden does not have sex) and a visit to an old teacher, Mr.

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Racism & racial slurs. Queermisia & queermisic slurs. Suicide recounted. Alcohol consumption.

"White Bird: A Wonder Story," by R.J.

A parent in the Spring Branch ISD said this graphic novel — about a Jewish teen living in France after Nazis seized power — should be banned because it's "biased" and could lead to the "skewing of a young child's mind."

All animals are equal. Appended to these commandments is the mantra or slogan 'four legs good, two legs bad', because animals (who walk on four legs) are their friends while their two-legged human overlords are evil.

Official Challenges

Despite challenges, the book has never been banned. Lord of the Flies is currently ranked number eight on American Library Association's (ALA) list of Banned and/or Challenged Books from the Radcliffe Publishing Course Top 100 Novels of the 20th Century.

This award-winning bestselling YA fiction title about the shooting of a young, unarmed black man by a white police officer was challenged at a Springfield (MO) middle school. The original complaint was about the lack of specificity in permission slips, as well as language and sexual situations.

The real reason was that for thousands of years purple dye was far too expensive. It was possible the most expensive product available being worth more than gold, jewels, castles, ships, silk, spices, and silver.

Why was I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings banned? ›

Angelou's unguarded depiction of rape and sexual abuse, and her treatment of topics such as racism and teenage pregnancy, placed the work at the top of the American Library Association's list of banned books, where it still remains today.

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

She ultimately saves Wilbur before her naturally short lifespan comes to an end. Due to themes of death and the fact that the main characters are talking animals, a parent group in Kansas sought to ban the book from their students' school libraries.

The titles contain offensive depictions of African and Asian people.

According to the American Library Association, The Glass Castle was the seventeenth most banned and challenged book in the United States 2010 and 2019 and the ninth most challenged book in 2012. The book has been challenged due to offensive language and being sexually explicit.

What Is the Most Banned Book in America? For all time, the most frequently banned book is 1984 by George Orwell.

Orwell's “1984” was challenged for its pro-communist and sexually explicit content, alongside other subversive and dystopian stories such as Orwell's “Animal Farm” and Alduous Huxley's “Brave New World,” but has since become known as one of the most significant rationalizations for freedom of speech and expression.

Accordingly to the ALA, frequently banned classics include: "To Kill a Mockingbird," by Harper Lee. "The Catcher in the Rye," by JD Salinger. "The Grapes of Wrath," by John Steinbeck. "The Color Purple," by Alice Walker.

By George Orwell. Why it was banned: George Orwell's 1984 has repeatedly been banned and challenged in the past for its social and political themes, as well as for sexual content. Additionally, in 1981, the book was challenged in Jackson County, Florida, for being pro-communism.

Fortunately, the First Amendment protects Americans from an outright banning of books by the U.S. government, but each year many books are “challenged” and taken to court to prevent schools or libraries from carrying the titles.

Is the Bible one of the most banned books? ›

To ban a book is to ban creativity. The following books are the top 4 banned books of all time: The Bible Book Buttons Embed ISBN: 9780529124586 The American Library Association recently released a study showing that the Bible has become the most banned book for the … Banning books is a weird thing.

Most-Banned Book Author in America Ellen Hopkins Calls BS on Parents' 'Concern'

"The Handmaid's Tale" was among titles targeted for sexual or health-related content, while a "disproportionate" number of bans focused on stories relating to LGBTQ+ people and people of color, according to PEN America.

The books are banned in several public schools and libraries in the U.S., but young people can read digital versions from anywhere through the library. As 2023 dawns, Ray Bradbury's groundbreaking work about censorship, “Fahrenheit 451,” will celebrate the 70th anniversary of its publication.

“Book bans violate the First Amendment because they deprive children or students of the right to receive information and ideas,” explained David L. Hudson Jr., a professor at Belmont University College of Law and a First Amendment law expert.

Harry Potter Series

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was published in 1997. In 2001, the book was banned because of ”satanism and anti-family themes.” In 2002-2004, the book was banned for its focus on wizardry and magic. However, these bans did not stop Rowling from writing the rest of the series.

The following were the top three reasons cited for challenging materials as reported to the Office of Intellectual Freedom: the material was considered to be "sexually explicit" the material contained "offensive language" the materials was "unsuited to any age group"