Banned Books Week
Welcome to our digital exhibit on Banned Books Week. This page is a companion to the physical display in the HKS Library, last available in October 2023. Harvard affiliates can request books via HOLLIS, for pick-up at the library of your choice.
Organized annually by the American Library Association (ALA) for the past 40 years, Banned Books Week "celebrates the freedom to read and spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools." Banned Books Week 2023 took place from October 1 - 7, but the HKS Library display was up for the whole month.
As defined by PEN America, a book ban refers to "any action taken against a book based on its content and as a result of parent or community challenges, administrative decisions, or in response to direct or threatened action by lawmakers or other governmental officials, that leads to a previously accessible book being either completely removed from availability to students, or where access to a book is restricted or diminished." When a book faces threat from these actions, the book is known as being "challenged."
Banned Books Week 2023 was particularly urgent because libraries across the U.S. were facing an unprecedented number of attempts to ban books. The ALA documented 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022, targeting 2,571 unique titles. This is the highest number of book challenges since the ALA began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years ago, and represents a near doubling of the book challenges recorded in 2021. These challenges overwhelmingly targeted books featuring LGBTQ+ themes or characters (particularly trans themes/characters), characters of color, and themes of race and racism. 89% of these challenges targeted public and school libraries.
In 2022, Texas saw the most book challenges at 93, targeting 2,349 titles. Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye was the most challenged in Texas for its depiction of sexual abuse, explicitly racial content, and claims of being sexually explicit. Massachusetts was among the top five states in book challenges, with 45 challenges targeting 57 titles. The most frequently challenged title in Massachusetts was Gender Queer: A Memoir for LGBTQIA+ content and claims of being sexually explicit.
Before 2020, most book challenges were brought by a single parent who sought to remove or restrict access to a book their child was reading. This changed in 2022, when 90% of reported book challenges targeted multiple titles - many up to 100 books at once (ALA, 2023). During the 2022-2023 school year, 20% of book challenges were brought by organized advocacy groups. 58% of these efforts were connected to Moms for Liberty. Another 25% of book challenges were connected to political pressure from elected or appointed officials, and 31% were connected to newly enacted state laws in Florida, Utah, and Missouri (PEN America, April 2023).
In Florida, Utah, and Missouri, book challenges were coupled with legislation. Laws enacted in 2023 or just prior contain "direct prohibitions on certain content in schools, specify new rules about how books need to be cataloged or new conditions under which they can be accessed, or threaten punishment for teachers, librarians, and administrators if they provide students access to material deemed 'harmful' or 'explicit'" (PEN America, April 2023).
Most Challenged Books: 2021-2023
This list is ranked in order of the number of challenges each book has received, according to the American Library Association and PEN America.
Click on the circular "i" icons to view book descriptions. Click on the Harvard shield icons to access ebooks (Harvard Key required).
The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by
ISBN: 9780593230589Publication Date: 2021Prevented from being acquired in schools in some states. A Texas law forbids teachers from "requir[ing] an understanding" of the book, and a Florida rule explicitly prohibits book material from being taught.Gender Queer: A Memoir by
ISBN: 9781549304002Publication Date: 2019Challenged 151 times in 2022 for LGBTQIA+ content and claims of being sexually explicit.All Boys Aren't Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto by
ISBN: 9780374312718Publication Date: 2020Challenged 86 times in 2022 for LGBTQIA+ content and claims of being sexually explicit.The Bluest Eye by
ISBN: 9780307278449Publication Date: 2007Challenged 73 times in 2022 for depiction of sexual abuse, explicitly racial content, and claims of being sexually explicit.Looking for Alaska by
ISBN: 9780525475064Publication Date: 2005Challenged 55 times in 2022 for LGBTQIA+ content and claims of being sexually explicit.The Perks of Being a Wallflower by
ISBN: 9780671027346Publication Date: 1999Challenged 55 times in 2022 for depiction of sexual abuse, LGBTQIA+ content, drug use, profanity, and claims of being sexually explicit.Lawn Boy by
ISBN: 9781616202620Publication Date: 2018Challenged 54 times in 2022 for LGBTQIA+ content and claims of being sexually explicit.The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by
ISBN: 9780316013697Publication Date: 2009Challenged 52 times in 2022 for profanity and claims of being sexually explicit.Out of Darkness by
ISBN: 9781467742023Publication Date: 2015Challenged 50 times in 2022 for depictions of abuse and claims of being sexually explicit.Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by
ISBN: 9781419705328Publication Date: 2013Challenged 48 times in 2022 for profanity and claims of being sexually explicit.This Book Is Gay by
ISBN: 9781728254326Publication Date: 2021Challenged 48 times in 2022 for LGBTQIA+ content, providing sexual education, and claims of being sexually explicit.The Hate U Give by
ISBN: 9780062498533Publication Date: 2017Challenged 17 times in 2021-2022 for racial themes, profanity, and explicit content.Thirteen Reasons Why by
ISBN: 9781595141712Publication Date: 2007Challenged 12 times in 2021-2022 for depiction of teen suicide, sexual assault, and drug and alcohol abuse.The Kite Runner by
ISBN: 9781573222457Publication Date: 2003Challenged 12 times in 2021-2022 for depiction of sexual abuse.Beloved by
ISBN: 9780307264886Publication Date: 2006Challenged 11 times in 2021-2022 for graphic depictions of slavery.Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by
ISBN: 9780763656119Publication Date: 2014Challenged 11 times in 2021-2022 for claims of being "anti-family" and sexually explicit.This One Summer by
ISBN: 9781596437746Publication Date: 2014Challenged 11 times in 2021-2022 for depiction of mental health issues and teen pregnancy, and for claims of being sexually explicit.Milk and Honey by
ISBN: 9781449474256Publication Date: 2015Challenged 10 times in the first half of the 2022-2023 school year for depiction of violence and abuse.The Handmaid's Tale by
ISBN: 9780395404256Publication Date: 1986-02-01Challenged 9 times in 2021-2022 for claims of being sexually explicit.All American Boys by
ISBN: 9781481463348Publication Date: 2017Challenged 9 times in 2021-2022 for explicitly racial content and depiction of law enforcement.Dear Martin by
ISBN: 9781101939499Publication Date: 2017Challenged 7 times in 2021-2022 for explicitly racial content and depiction of law enforcement.How to Be an Antiracist by
ISBN: 9780525509288Publication Date: 2019Challenged 5 times in 2021-2022 for explicitly racial content.