LET BOOKS BE ~ PROTECT THE FREEDOM TO READ
BANNED BOOKS WEEK
October 4-10, 2026
As reported at ALA.org:
“Every year, ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) compiles a list of the Top 10 Most Challenged Books in order to inform the public about censorship in libraries and schools. The lists are based on information from confidential reports filed by library professionals and community members, as well as news stories published throughout the United States.
Because many book challenges are not reported to the ALA or covered by the press, the data compiled by ALA represent only a snapshot of censorship attempts in libraries.
The 2025 data reported to ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) shows that the majority of book censorship attempts continue to originate from organized movements. In 2025, 92% of all book challenges were initiated by pressure groups, government officials, and decision makers, up from 72% in 2024. Less than 3% of challenges originated from individual parents.
The most common justifications for censorship provided by complainants were false claims of illegal obscenity for minors; inclusion of LGBTQIA+ characters or themes; and covering topics of race, racism, equity, and social justice.
TOP ELEVEN CHALLENGED BOOKS OF 2026
Sold by Patricia McCormick: Number of challenges in 2025: 36
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky: Number of challenges: 33
Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe: Number of challenges: 25
Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas: Number of challenges: 24
(TIE) Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo: Number of challenges: 23
(TIE)Tricks by Ellen Hopkins: Number of challenges: 23
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas: Number of challenges: 22
(TIE) A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess: Number of challenges: 21
(TIE) Identical by Ellen Hopkins: Number of challenges: 21
(TIE) Looking for Alaska by John Green: Number of challenges: 21
(TIE) Storm and Fury by Jennifer L. Armentrout: Number of challenges: 21
Frequently banned (all time)
1984, George Orwell
Alice (series), Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Beloved, Toni Morrison
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou
Lord of the Flies, William Golding
Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck
One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Ken Kesey
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (series), Alvin Schwartz
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain
The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison
The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger
The Color Purple, Alice Walker
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
More banned classics
A Farewell to Arms, Ernest Hemingway
Animal Farm, George Orwell
As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner
Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
Catch-22, Joseph Heller
Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov
Lord of the Flies, William Golding
Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck
The Call of the Wild, Jack London
The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck
Banned for racial topics
The 1619 Project, Nikole Hannah-Jones
All American Boys, Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates
Ghost Boys, Jewell Parker Rhodes
Hood Feminism, Mikki Kendall
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You, Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
The Hate U Give, Angie Thomas
Banned for LGBTQ themes
All Boys Aren’t Blue, George M. Johnson
Flamer, Mike Curato
Gender Queer: A Memoir, Maia Kobabe
Let’s Talk About It: The Teen’s Guide to Sex, Relationships, and Being a Human, Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Jesse Andrews
Red, White & Royal Blue, Casey McQuiston
Sold, Patricia McCormick
The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison
This Book Is Gay, Juno Dawson
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky
Tricks, Ellen Hopkins
Banned children’s books
A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle
And Tango Makes Three, Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret, Judy Blume
Bridge to Terabithia, Katherine Paterson
Captain Underpants (series), Dav Pilkey
Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank
Harry Potter (series), J.K. Rowling
James and the Giant Peach, Roald Dahl
The Giver, Lois Lowry
This One Summer, Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki
