research paper on banned books

Morris Library

• 618-453-1455
• [email protected]

Banned Books: Protect Your Freedom to Read

• Protect Your Freedom to Read
• The Banned Book Collection in Morris

Banned Books Week is celebrated annually, with sponsorship from the American Library Association (ALA), the National Association of College Stores, and many other organizations. According to the ALA, "Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States."

A Worrisome Trend

ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom documented 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022, the highest number of attempted book bans since ALA began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years ago. The unparalleled number of reported book challenges in 2022 nearly doubles the 729 book challenges reported in 2021. Censors targeted a record 2,571 unique titles in 2022 , a 38% increase from the 1,858 unique titles targeted for censorship in 2021. Of those titles, the vast majority were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community or by and about Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color.

• Censorship by the Numbers Resources documenting the number and locations of censorship attempts against libraries and materials compiled by ALA's Office of Intellectual Freedom.
• Book Ban Data, ALA Latest numbers from ALA about book bans and challenges in the United States, including preliminary data from the first half of 2023. TL;DR: They're up. A lot.
• Banned and Challenged Books ALA's page devoted to censorship attempts and the annual Banned Books Week celebration.
• Book Bans, PEN America Resources and commentary related to book bans in the U.S., including a comprehensive list of successful school bans, assembled by a national writer's association.
• Ralph E. McCoy Collection of the Freedom of the Press Housed in the Special Collections Research Center on the first floor of Morris Library, the McCoy Collection offers the opportunity to explore issues of censorship and freedom of expression from a historical perspective. It is one of the world's best collections of rare books highlighting the history of First Amendment freedoms. It includes examples of many books that have been banned in the United States and Europe over the centuries. Many of the books listed below part of this collection. more... less... used in Overview of African American history collections in SCRC on Resources for the Study of African American History in Southern Illinois: Overview of Special Collections
• Beacon for Freedom of Expression The Beacon for Freedom project maintains an extensive database of censored publications and publications about censorship.

Banned Books Club and Books Unbanned

The Banned Books Club is a collaboration between libraries and sponsors to make banned books available online and at libraries for free. The University of Chicago and the Digital Public Library of America are offering free access to all Illinois residents through the Palace app.

• Banned Book Club Program to provide free access to electronic copies of banned books. Follow the steps to "Access Banned Books" to get your free card and start reading.
• Banned Books Club at the Palace Project Jump straight to the app the Banned Book Club uses to provide access to available titles.

A number of public libraries nationwide have joined the Books Unbanned initiative, offering free access to commonly challenged or banned titles in eBook form to readers age 13-26. If you fall in that age bracket, sign up for a free temporary library card and read banned books!

• Boston Public Library Books Unbanned Program
• Brooklyn Public Library Books Unbanned Program
• Seattle Public Library Books Unbanned Program

Top Ten Challenged Books from the Last Five Years

Banned in 2021 - 2022

According to PEN America, 1,636 different books were banned—not only challenged, but actually removed from shelves—in classrooms, schools, or libraries in the U.S. for at least a portion of the time between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 2022. The following is a list of these banned titles available through Morris Library.

• Next: The Banned Book Collection in Morris >>
• Last Updated: Feb 22, 2024 11:55 AM
• URL: https://libguides.lib.siu.edu/bannedbooks

Researching Banned or Challenged Books: Resources for Challenge Research

• Resources for Challenge Research
• Was Winnie the Pooh Banned?

Key Resource

The key resource for researching why a particular title was challenged or banned are the publications of ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom.  The Office maintains information on which books are challenged and why and regularly publishes this information in the Journal of Intellectual Freedom and Privacy , where there may also be discussion of the events surrounding a challenge, and in a compilation published about every three years, most recently in Banned Books: Defending our Freedom to Read , edited by Robert P. Doyle. (Before 2016, similar information was in the Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom.)

Doyle and others used histories of censorship to compile the initial listing of challenged or banned books; this bibliography is in the Guide , as well as included on a list of books on censorship maintained by the ALA Library.

More recent entries are derived from the Journal of Intellectual Freedom and Privacy or Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom.

This publication is available in many libraries around the country, or may be ordered from the ALA Store..

• Books on Censorship Bibliography supporting research on censorship, banned and challenged books, and intellectual freedom. For researching why a particular book has been challenged, we recommend the Banned Books Resource Guide, which is represented on this list by the most recent editions, as well as the entry for the serial comprised of all the editions.
• Journal of Intellectual Freedom and Privacy The official journal of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF). JIFP is a double-blind peer reviewed publication, topically focused on practical, moral, ethical, philosophical, and theoretical issues of intellectual freedom and informational privacy within the United States and globally. Published quarterly. more... less... Two most current issues are available by subscription only. Older issues are made available via open access at the link above. ISSN 2474-7459
• Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom Superceded by the Journal Of Intellectual Freedom and Privacy. The Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom was the only journal that reported attempts to remove materials from school and library shelves across the country. The NIF was the source for the latest information on intellectual freedom issues.

Additional ALA Resources

The Banned Books Week pages on the ALA website offer many ways to look at the challenge data that has been collection.  The links provided here will be of use to students doing research.

• Challenged Classics (with reasons) The classics in the Radcliffe Publishing Course Top 100 Novels of the 20th century, with challenge reports from the 2010 edition of "Banned Books."
• Frequently Challenged Books Most current top ten, with links to statistical analyses and subsets.
• Mapping Censorship This map is drawn from cases documented by ALA and the Kids' Right to Read Project, a collaboration of the National Coalition Against Censorship and the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression. Details are available in ALA's "Books Banned and Challenged 2007-2008; 2008-2009; 2009-2010; 2010-2011; 2011-2012; and 2012-2013," and the "Kids' Right to Read Project Report." “Mapping Censorship” was created by Chris Peterson of the National Coalition Against Censorship and Alita Edelman of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression.
• Read Banned Books YouTube Channel Videos of Virtual Read-Outs and other videos from ALA OIF.
• Timeline: 30 Years of Librerating :Literature Since 1982, Banned Books Week has rallied librarians, booksellers, authors, publishers, teachers, and readers of all types to celebrate and defend the freedom to read. To commemorate 30 years of Banned Books Week and enter our 31st year of protecting readers' rights, ALA prepared l this timeline of significant banned and challenged books. Timeline powered by Tiki-Toki.

Where else to look....

If your library does not have "Banned Books," use the library catalog to locate books on censorship.  Useful subject headings are "Challenged books--United States" or "Censorship--United States."

Many libraries offer databases enabling access to periodicals and newspapers. Ask your librarian about accessing these--or visit your library's website, library card in hand, to access.

Use newspaper indexes such as the following to read coverage of book challenges in the communities where they occurred.

• LexisNexis - Full-text access to magazines and newspapers, including the New York Times.
• NewsBank - Full-text articles from major metropolitan newspapers.
• ProQuest Historical Newspapers™ - Digital archive offering full-text and full-image articles for significant newspapers dating back to the eighteenth century.

Use literature databases such as the following to seek out biographies of authors, book synopses, bibliographies, and critical analysis.

• Booklist Online - Reviews, awards information, some author information in editorial content
• Gale Literature Resource Center - Has full-text articles and book reviews, biographical essays.
• Library and Information Science Source - Full-text and indexed entries from library science literature, including major review sources
• NovelList - Includes reviews and reading recommendations, reading levels, summaries, and awards books have received.

Often, a general web search of < "[book title]" and (banned or challenged) > will yield up useful articles and blog posts about challenges.  For example, < "looking for alaska" (banned or challenged) > will bring up newspaper coverage--as well as a video by the author--on the censorship challenges faced by Looking for Alaska , by John Green.

Other websites

• Banned Books that Shaped America The Library of Congress created an exhibit, "Books that Shaped America," that explores books that "have had a profound effect on American life." Below is a list of books from that exhibit that have been banned/challenged.
• Banned Books Week The Banned Books Week Coalition is a national alliance of diverse organizations joined by a commitment to increase awareness of the annual celebration of the freedom to read. The Coalition seeks to engage various communities and inspire participation in Banned Books Week through education, advocacy, and the creation of programming about the problem of book censorship.
• Books Challenged or Banned in 2014-2015 A bibliography representing books challenged, restricted, removed, or banned in 2014 and 2015 as reported in the Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom from May 2014 to March 2015 and in American Libraries Direct (AL Direct), by Robert P. Doyle.
• National Coalition Against Censorship Resources for School Teachers and Students Background on the legal and practical questions surrounding school censorship controversies.
• NCTE Intellectual Freedom Center Censorship Challenge Reports Teachers, librarians, school administrators, and parents call upon NCTE for advice and materials regarding censorship challenges in their schools or districts.
• University of Pennsylvania Library "Banned Books Online" A special exhibit of books that have been the objects of censorship or censorship attempts, linking to free e-books.
• Wikipedia's "List of books banned by governments" Tabular listing, alphabetical by title, of books banned by governments, worldwide.
• << Previous: Home
• Next: Was Winnie the Pooh Banned? >>
• Last Updated: Apr 30, 2024 2:24 PM
• URL: https://libguides.ala.org/Researchingchallengedbooks

Book Bans May Have Unintended Consequences In Increasingly Polarized United States

In the United States, amid increasing political polarization, book banning has grown in prevalence. A new study using a large-scale data set of U.S. library book circulations evaluated the impact of book bans on demand for banned books. The study found that circulations of books rose after being banned, banning a book in one state leads to increases in circulation of that book in states that did not ban the book, and bans that are transformed into political issues boost donations to Republican candidates. The study, by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and George Mason University, is published as an SSRN working paper. “The primary goal of book bans is to restrict access to books, but conversations about the bans often garner attention on a wider scale,” explains Ananya Sen, assistant professor of information systems and economics at CMU’s Heinz College, who coauthored the study. “This increased attention can either deter people from reading the book or influence consumers to read it, which would be an unintended consequence.” Book bans and challenges in U.S. public schools and libraries have occurred for decades. But since 2021, there has been a significant push from state officials, elected representatives, parents, community members, and advocacy groups to remove more than 1,600 books that feature topics such as race, gender identity, and sexuality from public and school libraries. Researchers obtained book circulation data from a large library content and services supplier to major public and academic libraries in the United States; their data set contained more than 17,000 titles, including over 1,500 that were banned, as identified by 2021 and 2022 lists from the American Library Association and PEN America. The study’s goal was to determine what effect book bans by local schools and state bodies had on demand for the banned books. Among the study’s findings:

• Circulations of banned books increased 12% on average compared to similar non-banned titles after the ban.
• Banning a book in one state led to an 11% increase in circulation of the book in states of different political leanings that did not ban the book; this increase often featured books by lesser-known authors, suggesting that new and relatively unknown authors gained from rise in consumer support.
• Banned books with high visibility on social media saw increased readership, indicative of social media-driven political consumerism.
• Efforts to transform book bans into a political issue—which the authors of the study define as politicization—tended to increase the amount of donations received by Republican House candidates relative to those received by Democratic House candidates, but only in Republican-leaning states.

Summarized from an SSRN working paper, Book Bans in American Libraries: Impact of Politics on Inclusive Content Consumption by Ananthakrishnan, UM (Carnegie Mellon University), Basavaraj, N (Carnegie Mellon University), Karmegam, SR (George Mason University), Sen, A (Carnegie Mellon University), and Smith, MD (Carnegie Mellon University). Copyright 2023. All rights reserved. 

About Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy The Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy is home to two internationally recognized graduate-level institutions at Carnegie Mellon University: the School of Information Systems and Management and the School of Public Policy and Management. This unique colocation combined with its expertise in analytics set Heinz College apart in the areas of cybersecurity, health care, the future of work, smart cities, and arts & entertainment. In 2016, INFORMS named Heinz College the  #1 academic program  for Analytics Education. For more information, please visit  www.heinz.cmu.edu .

What You Need to Know About the Book Bans Sweeping the US

What you need to know about the book bans sweeping the u.s., as school leaders pull more books off library shelves and curriculum lists amid a fraught culture war, we explore the impact, legal landscape and history of book censorship in schools..

• The American Library Association reported a record-breaking number of attempts to ban books in 2022— up 38 percent from the previous year. Most of the books pulled off shelves are “written by or about members of the LGBTQ+ community and people of color."
• U.S. school boards have broad discretion to control the material disseminated in their classrooms and libraries. Legal precedent as to how the First Amendment should be considered remains vague, with the Supreme Court last ruling on the issue in 1982.
• Battles to censor materials over social justice issues pose numerous implications for education while also mirroring other politically-motivated acts of censorship throughout history. 

Here are all of your questions about book bans answered by TC experts. 

Alex Eble, Assistant Professor of Economics and Education; Sonya Douglass, Professor of Education Leadership; Michael Rebell, Professor of Law and Educational Practice; and Ansley Erickson, Associate Professor of History and Education Policy. (Photos; TC Archives) 

How Do Book Bans Impact Students? 

Prior to the rise in bans, white male youth were already more likely to see themselves depicted in children’s books than their peers, despite research demonstrating how more culturally inclusive material can uplift all children, according to a study, forthcoming in the Quarterly Journal of Economics , from TC’s Alex Eble.  

“Books can change outcomes for students themselves when they see people who look like them represented,” explains the Associate Professor of Economics and Education. “What people see affects who they become, what they believe about themselves and also what they believe about others…Not having equitable representation robs people of seeing the full wealth of the future that we all can inhabit.” 

While books have stood in the crossfire of political battles throughout history, today’s most banned books address issues related to race, gender identity and sexuality — major flashpoints in the ongoing American culture war. But beyond limiting the scope of how students see themselves and their peers, what are the risks of limiting information access? 

The student plaintiffs in Island Trees Union Free School District v. Pico (1982) march in protest of the Long Island school district's removal of titles such as Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. While the district would ultimately return the banned books to its shelves, the Supreme Court's ultimate ruling largely allowed school leaders to maintain discretion over information access. (Photo credit: unknown) 

“[Book bans] diminish the quality of education students have access to and restrict their exposure to important perspectives that form the fabric of a culturally pluralist society like the United States,” explains TC’s Sonya Douglas s, Professor of Education Leadership. “It's a battle over the soul of the country in many ways; it's about what we teach young people about our country, what we determine to be the truth, and what we believe should be included in the curriculum they're receiving. There's a lot at stake there.” 

Material stripped from libraries and curriculum include works written by Black authors that discuss police brutality, the history of slavery in the U.S. and other issues. As such, Black students are among those who may be most affected by bans across the country, but — in Douglass’ view — this is simply one of the more recent disappointments in a long history of Black communities being let down by public education — chronicled in her 2020 book, and further supported by a 2021 study from Douglass’ Black Education Research Center that revealed how Black families lost trust in schools following the pandemic response and murder of George Floyd.

In that historical and cultural context — even as scholars like Douglass work to implement Black studies curriculums — the failure of schools to properly integrate Black experiences into the curriculum remains vast. 

“We want to make sure that children learn the truth, and that we give them the capacity to handle truths that may be uncomfortable and difficult,” says Douglass, citing Germany as an example of a nation that has prioritized curriculum that highlights its own injustices, such as the Holocaust. “This moment again requires us to take stock of the fact that racism and bigotry still are a challenging part of American life. When we better understand that history, when we see the patterns, when we recognize the source of those issues, we can then do something about it.” 

Beginning in 1933, members of Hitler Youth regularly burned books written by prominent Jewish, liberal, and leftist writers. (Photo: World History Archive / Alamy Stock Photo, dated 1938) 

Why Is Banning Books Legal? 

While legal battles over book censorship in schools consistently unfold at local levels, the wave of book bans across the U.S. surfaces a critical question: why hasn’t the United States had more definitive legal closure on this issue? 

In 1982, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a noncommittal ruling that continues to keep school and library books in the political crosshairs more than 40 years later. In Island Trees Union Free School District v. Pico (1982), the Court deemed that “local school boards have broad discretion in the management of school affairs” and that discretion “must be exercised in a manner that comports with the transcendent imperatives of the First Amendment.” 

But what does this mean in practice? In these kinds of cases, the application of the First Amendment hinges on the existence of evidence that books are banned for political reasons and violate freedom of expression. However, without more explicit guidance, school boards often make decisions that prioritize “community values” first and access to information second. 

While today's recent book bans most frequently include topics related to racial justice and gender identity (pictured above), other frequently targeted titles include Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close , The Kite Runner and The Handmaid's Tale . (Cover images courtesy of: Viking Books, Sourcebooks Fire, Balzer + Bray, Oni Press, Random House ‎ and Farrar, Straus and Giroux). 

“America traditionally has prided itself on local control of education — the fact that we have active citizen and parental involvement in school board issues, including curriculum,” explains TC’s Michael Rebell , Professor of Law and Educational Practice. “We have, whether you want to call it a clash or a balancing, of two legal considerations here: the ability of children to freely learn what they need to learn to be able to exercise their constitutional rights, and this traditional right of the school authorities to determine what the curriculum is.” 

So would students benefit from more national and uniform legal guidance on book banning? In this political climate, Rebell attests, the risks very well might outweigh the potential rewards. 

“Your local institutions are —in theory — protecting the values you believe in. And if somebody in Washington were going to say that we couldn't have books that talk about transgender rights and things in New York libraries, we'd go crazy, right?” said Rebell, who leads the Center for Educational Equity . “So I can't imagine that in this polarized environment, people would be in favor of federal law, whatever it said.” 

Why Do Waves of Book Bans Keep Happening?

Historians date censorship back all the way to the earliest appearance of written materials. Ancient Chinese emperor Shih Huang Ti began eliminating historical texts in 259 B.C., and in 35 A.D., Roman emperor Caligula objected to the ideals of Greek freedom depicted in The Odyssey . In numerous waves of censorship since then, book bans have consistently manifested the struggle for political control. 

“We have to think about [the current bans] as part of a longer pattern of fights over what is in curriculum and what is kept out of it,” explains TC’s Ansley Erickson , Associate Professor of History and Education Policy, who regularly prepares local teachers on how to integrate Harlem history into social studies curriculum. 

“The United States’ history, since its inception, is full of uses of curriculum to shape politics, the economy and the culture,” says Erickson. “This is a really dramatic moment, but the curriculum has always been political, and people in power have always been using it to emphasize their power. And historically marginalized groups have always challenged that power.” 

One example: when Latinx students were forbidden from speaking Spanish in their Southwest schools throughout the 20th century, they worked to maintain their traditions and culture at home. 

“These bans really matter, but one of the ways we can imagine a response is by looking back at how people created spaces for what wasn’t given room for in the classroom,” Erickson says. 

What Could Happen Next?

American schools stand at a critical inflection point, and amid this heated debate, Rebell sees civil discourse at school board meetings as a paramount starting point for any sort of resolution. “This mounting crisis can serve as a motivator to bring people together to try to deal with our differences in respectful ways and to see how much common ground can be found on the importance of exposing all of our students to a broad range of ideas and experiences,” says Rebell. “Carve-outs can also be found for allowing parents who feel really strongly that certain content is inconsistent with their religious or other values to exempt their children from certain content without limiting the options for other children.”

But students, families and educators also have the opportunity to speak out, explains Douglass, who expressed concern for how her own daughter is affected by book bans. 

“I’d like to see a groundswell movement to reclaim the nation's commitment to education — to recognize that we're experiencing growing pains and changes in terms of what we stand for; and whether or not we want to live up to the democratic ideal of freedom of speech; different ideas in the marketplace, and a commitment to civics education and political participation,” says Douglass. 

As publishers and librarians file lawsuits to push back, students are also mobilizing to protest bans — from Texas to western New York and elsewhere. But as more local battles unfold, bigger issues remain unsolved. 

“We need to have a conversation as a nation about healing; about being able to confront the past; about receiving an apology and beginning that process of reconciliation,” says Douglass. “Until we tackle that head on, we'll continue to have these types of battles.” 

— Morgan Gilbard

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the speaker to whom they are attributed. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the faculty, administration, staff or Trustees either of Teachers College or of Columbia University.

Tags: Views on the News Education Policy K-12 Education Social Justice

Programs: Economics and Education Education Leadership History and Education

Departments: Education Policy & Social Analysis

Published Wednesday, Sep 6, 2023

Teachers College Newsroom

Address: Institutional Advancement 193-197 Grace Dodge Hall

Box: 306 Phone: (212) 678-3231 Email: views@tc.columbia.edu

• Harvard Library
• Research Guides
• Harvard Graduate School of Education - Gutman Library

Banned Books

• What is a Banned Book?
• History of Book Banning
• Banned and Challenged Books
• The Role of ChatGPT in Book Banning and Censorship
• Get Involved! Further Resources to Fight Book Bans

Books have been banned or challenged throughout history and this trend continues today. A banned book is a book that may be:

• Removed from a library or libraries
• Not allowed to be published
• Not allowed to enter a country 
• Not allowed to exist, or be physically destroyed such as the case of book burning during Nazi Germany
• The most extreme form of banning is the death or demand for the death of the author, most recently with Salman Rushdie

A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials based upon the objections of a person or a group thereby restricting the access of others.

A banning is the removal of those materials that have been challenged and that challenge has succeeded.

• Next: History of Book Banning >>
• Last Updated: Sep 18, 2023 4:29 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.harvard.edu/c.php?g=1269000

Harvard University Digital Accessibility Policy

Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World

Read our research on:

Full Topic List

Regions & Countries

• Publications
• Our Methods
• Short Reads
• Tools & Resources

Read Our Research On:

Support Public Library Book Banning

Since 1999, support for the idea of banning “books with dangerous ideas” from public school libraries has declined from 55% to 46% and has now fallen to the lowest level of support of the past 20 years, in contrast with the modest increase observed in concerns about pornographic material in magazines and movies. But even in the early 1990s, as few as 48% had supported banning such books. While there are relatively modest partisan differences in opinions about banning dangerous books, there are divisions within parties, especially among Democrats. Two-thirds of liberal Democrats (67%) disagree that dangerous books should be banned — and 52% completely disagree. By comparison, most conservative and moderate Democrats (56%) agree with the banning of dangerous books (and a relatively large proportion — 37% — completely agrees). Republicans are somewhat less divided, although 52% of conservative Republicans favor a ban on such books compared with 40% of moderate and liberal Republicans. Read More

Russell Heimlich is a former web developer at Pew Research Center .

Most Popular

1615 L St. NW, Suite 800 Washington, DC 20036 USA (+1) 202-419-4300 | Main (+1) 202-857-8562 | Fax (+1) 202-419-4372 |  Media Inquiries

Research Topics

• Age & Generations
• Coronavirus (COVID-19)
• Economy & Work
• Family & Relationships
• Gender & LGBTQ
• Immigration & Migration
• International Affairs
• Internet & Technology
• Methodological Research
• News Habits & Media
• Non-U.S. Governments
• Other Topics
• Politics & Policy
• Race & Ethnicity
• Email Newsletters

ABOUT PEW RESEARCH CENTER  Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of  The Pew Charitable Trusts .

Copyright 2024 Pew Research Center

Terms & Conditions

Privacy Policy

Cookie Settings

Reprints, Permissions & Use Policy

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

•  We're Hiring!
•  Help Center

Banned Books

• Most Cited Papers
• Most Downloaded Papers
• Newest Papers
• Save to Library
• Alice Walker Follow Following
• Science Fiction Follow Following
• Comics and Graphic Novels Follow Following
• Meta-Analysis and Systematic Review Follow Following
• Download Follow Following
• Banned literature Follow Following
• Books Follow Following
• Literature Follow Following
• Migration and Ethnicity (English Literature) Follow Following
• Indian Diaspora in Africa Follow Following

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• Academia.edu Publishing
•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024

Explore our MarketPlace and Book Bank. Or, become a member today!

• First Book Marketplace Thousands of low-cost books and educational resources.
• First Book National Book Bank Books in Bulk: Serve more kids for less.
• Become a Member Get access to resources and funding, and add your voice to our movement.

Looking for Books and Resources >>  

How Book Bans Impact Educators and Students

First Book Research & Insights study reveals how educators and their students are responding to book bans.

New Study Reveals the Damaging Impact Book Bans Have on Teacher Morale and Student Learning

One-third of educators surveyed are facing book bans, challenges, or policy restrictions..

About the Study

To understand the impact that the national conversation around banned books is having on educators’ ability to teach and students’ ability to learn, Research & Insights surveyed educators in the First Book Network.

While the majority of educators that responded to this survey have not been required to remove books from their classroom libraries, this study revealed that the conversation about book bans and book challenges is having a chilling effect on educators and students beyond the districts that have experienced book bans:

• 46% of educators report that the conversation around banned books already does or might influence the titles they choose for their class.
• 37% of educators report that the conversation around banned books already does or might influence the way they teach.
• 63% of educators report that the current conversation around banned books is impacting their teaching to some degree.

This study reveals that the conversation and actions to ban and/or censor books in schools, libraries, and programs are having a negative impact on educators’ ability to teach and students’ ability to learn — and these negative impacts reach far beyond just the districts that are facing bans. In addition, the book banning efforts are yet another example of decisions being made that impact or restrict what happens in classrooms without opportunities for educator voices to be considered in the decision process. This may further undermine educator expertise and erode educator morale.

To learn more about how the study was conducted click below:

Key findings, a survey of more than 1,500 educators on the national conversation around book challenges and bans is negatively impacting their classrooms, profession, and student learning..

• 7% of educators have removed books from their classroom or program library due to book bans or challenges; more than twice that indicate they have removed books for other reasons.
• 87% of educators surveyed believe book bans are rarely or never justified.
• 65% of educators said that the banning of books is having a negative impact on their ability to teach.
• 71% of educators, regardless of whether their district has faced bans, believe book banning undermines their expertise, makes them feel distrusted, and increases their stress.
• Nearly two-thirds of educators said that book banning is having a negative impact on their ability to teach.

Encouraging freedom of choice and discussing banned books with students positively influences their willingness to initiate discussions about banned books and enhances their engagement in reading.

• Just over 40% of educators indicated that they are having conversations with their students about banned books.
• 31% of educators reported that students are initiating these conversations.
• 78% of educators indicated that students are reading more when banned books are available as an option.
• 72% of educators indicated that restricting access to certain books decreases students’ engagement in reading.

To view the full report, including additional data and comments from educators, click below:

Conversations on the Impact of Diverse and Banned Books in the Classroom

A first book research & insights webinar.

First Book Research & Insights hosted a well-attended webinar event to share results from their Diverse Books Impact Study and Banned Books Survey.

This data-driven session:

• Featured a discussion about diverse books and how including them in classroom libraries can be beneficial for students and teachers.
• Shed light on why banning certain diverse books can be harmful to the learning process.

Instead of teaching lessons that focused on Banned Book Week this year, my administrator asked me to pivot instruction to the idea of freedom to read. Instead of talking about all of the book banning happening in the US right now, we talked about how students have the freedom to read the books they want. First Book Educator

New First Book Study Tackles National Issue of Banned Books

For access to diverse books to share with your students, go to the fbmarketplace.org ., about first book research & insights.

First Book Research & Insights regularly gathers qualitative and quantitative data regarding the barriers to educational equity for children in low-income communities by directly surveying educators working with children in historically marginalized and underserved communities. This research drives First Book’s models, the resources it provides, and its partnerships. In addition, educator insights benefit the public, private, and social sectors, enabling input from educators to inform the design and refinement of programs, products, and strategies. This can increase resource effectiveness and adoption rates to better support both educators and children growing up in poverty, which disproportionately impacts children of color.

Founded in 1992, First Book is a nonprofit social enterprise building a world where all children have access to a quality education. We are on a mission to ensure that all children, regardless of their background or zip code, can succeed by removing barriers to equitable education because education transforms lives.

First Book 1319 F St NW, Suite 1000, Washington DC 20004

©2024 Copyright First Book. All Rights Reserved.

• Our Solutions
• Partner With Us
• Meet the Team
• Careers at First Book
• Privacy & Compliance Policies
• First Book Marketplace
• First Book National Book Bank
• Become a Member

Book Ban Data

The American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) has released new data documenting book challenges throughout the United States, finding that challenges of unique titles surged 65% in 2023 compared to 2022 numbers, reaching the highest level ever documented by ALA. Read the full announcement .

OIF documented 4,240 unique book titles targeted for censorship , as well as 1,247 demands to censor library books, materials, and resources in 2023 . Four key trends emerged from the data gathered from 2023 censorship reports:

• Pressure groups in 2023 focused on public libraries in addition to targeting school libraries. The number of titles targeted for censorship at public libraries increased by 92% over the previous year, accounting for about 46% of all book challenges in 2023 ; school libraries saw an 11% increase over 2022 numbers.
• Groups and individuals demanding the censorship of multiple titles, often dozens or hundreds at a time, drove this surge.
• Titles representing the voices and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals made up 47% of those targeted in censorship attempts.
• There were attempts to censor more than 100 titles in each of these 17 states: Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Spread the word. Download these graphics and share on social media!

Note: a previous version of one of these graphics incorrectly referenced the number of unique titles challenged in 2021 as 1,651. In fact, the actual number is 1,858 unique titles challenged. 1,651 is the number of unique titles challenged during the preliminary period between January 1 and August 31, 2022, originally reported in September 2022.

Take Action

Unite Against Book Bans is ALA's national initiative to empower readers everywhere to stand together in the fight against censorship with an array of resources, tools, and actions.

Reporting censorship and challenges to materials, resources, and services is vital to defending library resources and to protect against challenges before they happen.

Additional Resources

Lists of frequently challenged books compiled by ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom to inform the public about censorship efforts that affect libraries and schools.

A clearinghouse of resources to assist library workers and advocates in responding to and supporting others facing those challenges.

Documents designated by the Intellectual Freedom Committee as Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights and background statements detailing the philosophy and history of each.

Methodology

ALA compiles data on book challenges from reports filed by library professionals in the field and from news stories published throughout the United States. Because many book challenges are not reported to ALA or covered by the press, the data compiled by ALA represents a snapshot of book censorship.

A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict access to materials or services based upon the objections of a person or group. A challenge to a title may result in access to it being retained, restricted, or withdrawn entirely. Restrictions on access may include relocating the book to a section of the library intended for an older age group than the book is intended for, labeling it with a prejudicial content warning or rating, taking it out of the online catalog so it has to be requested from a staff member, removing it from open and freely browsable stacks, or requiring parental permission to check it out.

Challenges do not simply involve people expressing their point of view, but rather are an attempt to remove materials from curricula or libraries, thereby curtailing the ability of others to access information, views, ideas, expressions, and stories. A formal challenge leads to the reconsideration of the decision to purchase the material or offer the service. This process is governed by a board-approved policy and includes review of the material as a whole to assess if it is aligned with the library or school's mission and meets the criteria delineated in its selection, display, or programming policy (as applicable).

A book is banned when it is entirely removed from a collection in response to a formal or informal challenge.

Any reduction in access to library materials based on an individual or group's believe that they are harmful or offensive is an act of censorship. ALA does not consider weeding of an item based on criteria defined in a library or school district's policy to be a ban, nor do we characterize a temporary reduction in access resulting from the need to review materials to be a ban.

Share This Page

Why Book Bans Are Bad for Mental Health

Banning books may increase mental health risk and reduce empathy..

Posted May 9, 2024 | Reviewed by Abigail Fagan

• Why Education Is Important
• Find a Child Therapist
• Book challenges surged 65% in 2023, reaching the highest level ever documented.
• Research shows that books about characters who are not like the reader are the best for building empathy.
• Book bans may negatively impact the mental health of marginalized individuals, librarians, and youth.

More books have been challenged in recent years than ever before. According to the American Library Association’s (ALA) Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF), challenges of unique titles surged 65% in 2023 as compared to the previous year, reaching the highest level ever documented by ALA. What’s more, the ALA found that nearly half of demands were made by parents, patrons, or political/religious groups.

The OIF observed that pressure groups focused on public libraries and school libraries, and that often dozens, sometimes hundreds, of titles were challenged by a single entity at a time. Almost half (47%) of the titles challenged represent the voices and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals. This includes Black history, stories with a protagonist of color, and stories that discuss topics like puberty and teen pregnancy (Haupt, A., 2022).

Research supports that book bans are bad for mental health, especially impacting:

• Marginalized individuals whose stories are contained in the majority of challenged books. Research shows that people of color are at a higher risk of facing mental health issues, and have increased barriers to accessing mental health treatment, due to institutional and interpersonal discrimination , stigma , and socioeconomic barriers (Williams DR., 2018). LGBTQIA+ individuals are nearly three times more likely to develop a mental health disorder, like depression or anxiety , and some studies indicate that nearly 45% of LGBTQIA+ youth seriously considered attempting suicide in the last year (The Trevor Project, 2022). Banning books about the lived experiences and histories of marginalized groups of people only serve to increase feelings of exclusion and invisibility, and intensify their risk of mental health issues (Pickering, G., 2023).
• Children and teens suffer when books are banned in their schools and public libraries for many reasons. As young people are in a developmental period of identity formation with a strong focus on peer relationships, banning diverse books robs them of the opportunity to have an open dialogue and engage in critical thinking in a safe, supportive environment (Pfeifer JH, Berkman ET., 2018). Youth are likely to seek information elsewhere, from unmonitored, unsafe sources, without the support of trusted adults.
• Librarians and school staff experience added stress and anxiety due to the atmosphere of censorship that book banning creates. In fact, research shows that library staff are experiencing an increase in mental health issues in recent years (Shahzad, K., 2024). Many libraries are hiring support staff, like social workers and security, to respond to the rise of confrontational patrons who become aggressive toward librarians, often in response to books or events that they believe should be banned.
• Authors make their livelihood selling books, and book bans not only impact some authors’ income, but might leave them feeling excluded and marginalized as well. With fewer invitations to share their story at schools and libraries, authors and readers are missing out on an opportunity to connect, and to understand the value of another person’s perspective. Social media cruelty toward authors whose books are challenged can mirror cyberbullying, which can cause symptoms of anxiety and depression for the victim (Hu, Y., Bai, Y., Pan, Y., & Li, S., 2021).

The reality is that everyone loses when books are banned because it discourages reading, turning our attention toward social media, web surfing, and television, which negatively impacts the brain’s ability to sustain attention, reduces long-term memory formation and retrieval, and discourages analytical thinking (‌Firth J, et al, 2019). Additionally, this kind of censorship increases discrimination as readers get the message that certain groups of people and topics are “bad,” closing our minds to the opportunity to learn, which is really what reading is all about (Vogels, E., et al, 2021).

Most importantly, when books are banned we’re missing out on one of the most valuable benefits of reading – cultivating empathy. In fact, research shows that books about characters who are not like you are the best for building empathy (Kucirkova N., 2019).

While parents have a right to influence their child’s reading, banning books is detrimental to mental health. Perhaps the answer is not in pulling uncomfortable topics off the shelf, but engaging in conversations that matter, learning from one another’s perspectives, and trusting children to make choices guided by their values, regardless of the words on the page.

Book Ban Data | Banned Books. (n.d.). www.ala.org . https://www.ala.org/bbooks/book-ban-data

CUPE Research. “ TURNING THE PAGE: Library Workplace Violence and Harassment Survey Report .” March 2023.

‌Firth J, Torous J, Stubbs B, Firth JA, Steiner GZ, Smith L, Alvarez-Jimenez M, Gleeson J, Vancampfort D, Armitage CJ, Sarris J. The "online brain": how the Internet may be changing our cognition. World Psychiatry. 2019 Jun;18(2):119-129. doi: 10.1002/wps.20617. PMID: 31059635; PMCID: PMC6502424.

Haupt A. The rise in book bans, explained. Washington Post. June 9, 2022. Accessed June 2, 2023. https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2022/06/09/rise-book-bans-explained/

Hu, Y., Bai, Y., Pan, Y., & Li, S. (2021). Cyberbullying Victimization and Depression among Adolescents: A Meta-analysis. Psychiatry Research, 305, 114198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114198

Kucirkova N. (2019). How Could Children's Storybooks Promote Empathy? A Conceptual Framework Based on Developmental Psychology and Literary Theory. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 121. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00121

LGBTQ+. (n.d.). NAMI. https://www.nami.org/your-journey/identity-and-cultural-dimensions/lgbt…

Pfeifer JH, Berkman ET. The Development of Self and Identity in Adolescence: Neural Evidence and Implications for a Value-Based Choice Perspective on Motivated Behavior. Child Dev Perspect. 2018 Sep;12(3):158-164. doi: 10.1111/cdep.12279. Epub 2018 Feb 8. PMID: 31363361; PMCID: PMC6667174.

‌Pickering, G. (2023). “Harmful to Minors”: How Book Bans Hurt Adolescent Development. The Serials Librarian, 84(1–4), 32–45. https://doi.org/10.1080/0361526X.2023.2245843

‌Schwering SC, Ghaffari-Nikou NM, Zhao F, Niedenthal PM, MacDonald MC. Exploring the Relationship Between Fiction Reading and Emotion Recognition. Affect Sci. 2021 Apr 20;2(2):178-186. doi: 10.1007/s42761-021-00034-0. PMID: 36043173; PMCID: PMC9382981.

Shahzad, K. , Khan, S.A. and Iqbal, A. (2024), "Mental health issues of university librarians: a systematic literature review", Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication , Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/GKMC-07-2023-0261

‌The Trevor Project. (2022). 2022 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health. The Trevor Project. https://www.thetrevorproject.org/survey-2022/

Vogels, E., Anderson, M., Porteus, M., Baronavski, C., Atske, S., Mcclain, C., Auxier, B., Perrin, A., & Ramshankar, M. (2021, May 19). Americans and “Cancel Culture”: Where Some See Calls for Accountability, Others See Censorship, Punishment. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/05/19/americans-and-cancel-cu…

Williams DR. Stress and the Mental Health of Populations of Color: Advancing Our Understanding of Race-related Stressors. J Health Soc Behav. 2018 Dec;59(4):466-485. doi: 10.1177/0022146518814251. PMID: 30484715; PMCID: PMC6532404.

Heather Rose Artushin, LISW-CP, is a child and family therapist passionate about the power of reading.

• Find a Therapist
• Find a Treatment Center
• Find a Psychiatrist
• Find a Support Group
• Find Online Therapy
• International
• New Zealand
• South Africa
• Switzerland
• Asperger's
• Bipolar Disorder
• Chronic Pain
• Eating Disorders
• Passive Aggression
• Personality
• Goal Setting
• Positive Psychology
• Stopping Smoking
• Low Sexual Desire
• Relationships
• Child Development
• Therapy Center NEW
• Diagnosis Dictionary
• Types of Therapy

At any moment, someone’s aggravating behavior or our own bad luck can set us off on an emotional spiral that threatens to derail our entire day. Here’s how we can face our triggers with less reactivity so that we can get on with our lives.

• Emotional Intelligence
• Gaslighting
• Affective Forecasting
• Neuroscience

Controversial and Banned Books

Why These Controversial Novels Were Censored and Banned

• Authors & Texts
• Top Picks Lists
• Study Guides
• Best Sellers
• Plays & Drama
• Shakespeare
• Short Stories
• Children's Books
• M.A., English Literature, California State University - Sacramento
• B.A., English, California State University - Sacramento

Books are banned every day. Do you know some of the most famous examples of books that have been censored? Do you know why they've been challenged or banned. This list highlights some of the most famous books that have been been banned, censored or challenged. Take a look!

"Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" by Mark Twain

Published in 1884,  " Adventures of Huckleberry Finn " by Mark Twain has been banned on social grounds. Concord Public Library called the book "trash suitable only for the slums," when it first banned the novel in 1885. The references to and treatment of African Americans in the novel reflect the time about which it was written, but some critics have thought such language inappropriate for study and reading in schools and libraries.

"Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank

"Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl" is an important work from World War II. It chronicles the experiences of a young Jewish girl,  Anne Frank , as she lives under Nazi occupation. She hides with her family, but she is eventually discovered and sent to a concentration camp (where she died). This book was banned for passages that were considered "sexually offensive," as well as for the tragic nature of the book, which some readers felt was a "real downer."

"The Arabian Nights"

"The Arabian Nights" is a collection of tales, which has been banned by Arab governments. Various editions of "The Arabian Nights" were also banned by the U.S. government under the Comstock Law of 1873.

"The Awakening" by Kate Chopin

Kate Chopin 's novel, "The Awakening" (1899), is the famous tale of Edna Pontellier, who leaves her family, commits adultery, and begins to rediscover her true self — as an artist. Such an awakening is not easy, nor is it socially acceptable (particularly at the time the book was published). The book was criticized for being immoral and scandalous. After this novel was met with such scathing reviews, Chopin never wrote another novel. "The Awakening" is now considered an important work in feminist literature.

"The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath

" The Bell Jar " is the only novel by Sylvia Plath , and it is famous not only because it offers shocking insight into her mind and art, but also because it is a coming-of-age story — told in the first person by Esther Greenwood, who struggles with mental illness. Esther's suicide attempts made the book a target for book censors. (The book has been repeatedly banned and challenged for its controversial content.)

"Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley

Published in 1932, Aldous Huxley's " Brave New World " has been banned with complaints about the language used, as well morality issues. "Brave New World" is a satirical novel, with a stringent division of the classes, drugs, and free love. The book was banned in Ireland in 1932, and the book has been banned and challenged in schools and libraries across the United States. One complaint was that the novel "centered around negative activity."

"The Call of the Wild" by Jack London

Published by American author Jack London in 1903,  " The Call of the Wild" tells the story of a dog who reverts to his primordial impulses in the frigid wilds of the Yukon territory. The book is a popular piece for study in American literature classrooms (sometimes read in conjunction with "Walden" and "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn"). The novel was banned in Yugoslavia and Italy. In Yugoslavia, the complaint was that the book was "too radical."

"The Color Purple" by Alice Walker

" The Color Purple ," by Alice Walker , received the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, but the book has been frequently challenged and banned for what has been termed "sexual and social explicitness." The novel involves sexual assault and abuse. Despite the controversies concerning this title, the book was made into a motion picture.

"Candide" by Voltaire

Published in 1759, Voltaire 's " Candide " was banned by the Catholic Church. Bishop Etienne Antoine wrote: "We prohibit, under canonical law, the printing or sale of these books..."

"The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger

First published in 1951,  " The Catcher in the Rye " details 48 hours in the life of Holden Caulfield. The novel is the only novel-length work by J.D. Salinger, and its history has been colorful. "The Catcher in the Rye" is famous as the most censored, banned and challenged book between 1966 and 1975 for being "obscene," with an "excess of vulgar language, sexual scenes, and things concerning moral issues."

"Fahrenheit 451" by Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451" is about book burning and censorship (the title refers to the temperature at which paper burns), but the topic hasn't saved the novel from its own exposure to controversy and censorship. Several words and phrases (for example, "hell" and "damn") in the book have been deemed inappropriate and/or objectionable.

"The Grapes of Wrath" by John Steinbeck

" The Grapes of Wrath " is a great American epic novel by John Steinbeck . It depicts a family's journey from the Oklahoma Dust Bowl to California in search for a new life. Because of its vivid portrayal of a family during the Great Depression , the novel is often used in American literature and history classrooms. The book has been banned and challenged for "vulgar" language. Parents have also objected to "inappropriate sexual references."

"Gulliver's Travels" by Jonathan Swift

" Gulliver's Travels " is a famous satirical novel by Jonathan Swift, but the work has also been banned for the displays of madness, the public urination, and other controversial topics. Here, we are transported to through the dystopian experiences of Lemuel Gulliver, as he sees giants, talking horses, cities in the sky, and much more. The book was originally censored because of the politically sensitive references Swift makes in his novel. "Gulliver's Travels" was also banned in Ireland for being "wicked and obscene." William Makepeace Thackeray said of the book that it was "horrible, shameful, blasphemous, filthy in word, filthy in thought."

"I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou ' s autobiographical novel " I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings " has been banned on sexual grounds (specifically, the book mentions her rape, when she was a young girl). In Kansas, parents attempted to ban the book, based on the "vulgar language, sexual explicitness, or violent imagery that is gratuitously employed." "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" is a coming-of-age story that's packed with unforgettable poetic passages.

"James and the Giant Peach" by Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl's noted book " James and the Giant Peach " has been frequently challenged and banned for its content, including the abuse that James experiences. Others have claimed that the book promotes alcohol and drug use, that it contains inappropriate language, and that it encourages disobedience to parents.

"Lady Chatterley's Lover" by D.H. Lawrence

Published in 1928, D.H. Lawrence's "Lady Chatterley's Lover" has been banned for its sexually explicit nature. Lawrence wrote three versions of the novel.

"A Light in the Attic" by Shel Silverstein

"A Light in the Attic ,"  by poet and artist Shel Silverstein, is beloved by readers young and old. It has also been banned because of "suggestive illustrations." One library also claimed that the book "glorified Satan, suicide and cannibalism, and also encouraged children to be disobedient."

"Lord of the Flies" by William Golding

By the time that William Golding's novel " Lord of the Flies " was finally published in 1954, it had already been turned down by more than 20 publishers. The book is about a group of schoolboys who create their own civilization. Despite the fact that  " Lord of the Flies" was a bestseller, the novel has been banned and challenged — based on the "excessive violence and bad language." For his body of work, William Golding received the Nobel Prize for literature and he was knighted.

"Madame Bovary" by Gustave Flaubert

Published in 1857, Gustave Flaubert's " Madame Bovary " was banned on sexual grounds. In the trial, Imperial Advocate Ernest Pinard said, "No gauze for him, no veils — he gives us nature in all her nudity and crudity." Madame Bovary is a woman full of dreams — without any hope of finding a reality that will fulfill them. She marries a provincial doctor, tries to find love in all the wrong places, and eventually brings about her own ruination. In the end, she escapes in the only way she knows how. This novel is an exploration of the life of a woman who dreams too large. Here adultery and other actions have been controversial.

"Moll Flanders" by Daniel Defoe

Published in 1722, Daniel Defoe's " Moll Flanders " was one of the earliest novels. The book dramatically depicts the life and misadventures of a young girl who becomes a prostitute. The book has been challenged on sexual grounds.

"Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck

Published in 1937, John Steinbeck 's " Of Mice and Men " has been frequently banned on social grounds. The book has been called "offensive" and "vulgar" because of the language and characterization. Each of the characters in " Of Mice and Men " is affected by physical, emotional or mental limitations. In the end, the American Dream is not enough. One of the most controversial topics in the book is euthanasia.

"The Scarlet Letter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Published in 1850, Nathaniel Hawthorne 's " The Scarlet Letter " was censored on sexual grounds. The book has been challenged under claims that it is "pornographic and obscene." The story centers around Hester Prynne, a young Puritan woman with an illegitimate child. Hester is ostracized and marked with the scarlet letter "A." Because of her illicit affair and the resulting child, the book has been controversial.

"Song of Solomon" by Toni Morrison

Published in 1977, " Song of Solomon" is a novel by Toni Morrison , Nobel laureate in literature. The book has been controversial on social and sexual grounds. References to African Americans have been controversial; also a parent in Georgia claimed it was "filthy and inappropriate." Variously, "Song of Solomon" has been called "filth," "trash," and "repulsive."

"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee

" To Kill a Mockingbird " is the only novel by Harper Lee . The book has been frequently banned and challenged on sexual and social grounds. Not only does the novel discuss racial issues in the South, but the book involves a White attorney, Atticus Finch , defending a Black man against rape charges (and all that such a defense entails). The central character is a young girl (Scout Finch) in a coming-of-age story -- fraught with social and psychological issues.

"Ulysses" by James Joyce

Published in 1918, James Joyce 's " Ulysses " was banned on sexual grounds. Leopold Bloom sees a woman on the seashore, and his actions during that event have been considered controversial. Also, Bloom thinks about his wife's affair as he walks through Dublin on a famous day, now known as Bloomsday. In 1922, 500 copies of the book were burned by the United States Postal Service.

"Uncle Tom's Cabin" by Harriet Beecher Stowe

Published in 1852, Harriet Beecher Stowe 's " Uncle Tom's Cabin " was controversial. When President Lincoln saw Stowe, he purportedly said, "So you're the little woman who wrote the book that made this great war." The novel has been been banned for language concerns, as well as on social grounds. The book has been controversial for its portrayal of African Americans.

"A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeleine L'Engle

" A Wrinkle in Time ," by Madeleine L'Engle, is a mix of science fiction and fantasy. It's the first in a series of books, which also includes "A Wind in the Door," "A Swiftly Tilting Planet," and "Many Waters." The award-winning "A Wrinkle in Time" is a bestselling classic, which has also stirred up more than its fair share of controversy. The book is on the Most Challenged Books of 1990-2000 book list — based on claims of offensive language and religiously objectionable content (for references to crystal balls, demons, and witches).

• Banned Books in America
• The 10 Most-Banned Classic Novels
• Must-Read Books If You Like 'The Catcher in the Rye'
• Banned Books by African-American Authors
• Why Is 'Lord of the Flies' Challenged and Banned?
• The Top Coming-of-Age Novels
• Why Was "The Great Gatsby" Banned?
• The Harry Potter Controversy
• Banned Books: History and Quotes
• "Of Mice and Men"
• Censorship and Book Banning in America
• The Most Commonly Read Books in High School
• Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
• Banned Plays Through History
• 'Lord of the Flies' Questions for Study and Discussion
• Famous Fictional Heroines

Money blog: 'Loud budgeting' - The money-saving trend that has nothing to do with giving up your daily coffee

Created accidentally by a comedian, "loud budgeting" is breaking down the taboo of speaking about money. Read this and the rest of our Weekend Money features, and leave a comment, and we'll be back with rolling personal finance and consumer news on Monday.

Saturday 11 May 2024 08:04, UK

Weekend Money

• 'Loud budgeting': The money-saving trend that has nothing to do with giving up your daily coffee
• What is most in-demand period for a property?
• £12m tea advert, downsizing, £320 tasting menus and job interview mistakes: What readers have said this week
• Free childcare applications about to open for new age band
• Where has huge week for UK economy left us?

Best of the week

• How to avoid a holiday data roaming charge (while still using the internet)
• Mortgage rates up again this week - here are the best deals on the market
• My daughter discovered undeclared £600 management fee after buying her flat - can we complain?
• Best of the Money blog - an archive

Ask a question or make a comment

By Jess Sharp , Money team 

Money saving trends are constantly popping up on social media - but one in particular has been gaining huge amounts of attention.

Created accidentally by a comedian, loud budgeting is breaking down the taboo of speaking about money.

The idea is based on being firmer/more vocal about your financial boundaries in social situations and setting out what you are happy to spend your money on, instead of "Keeping up with the Joneses". 

On TikTok alone, videos published under the hashtag #loudbudgeting have garnered more than 30 million views - and that figure is continuing to climb. 

We spoke to Lukas Battle - the 26-year-old who unintentionally created the trend as part of a comedy sketch. 

Based in New York, he came up with the term in a skit about the "quiet luxury" hype, which had spread online in 2023 inspired by shows like Succession. 

The term was used for humble bragging about your wealth with expensive items that were subtle in their design - for example, Gwyneth Paltrow's  £3,900 moss green wool coat from The Row, which she wore during her ski resort trial...

"I was never a big fan of the quiet luxury trend, so I just kind of switched the words and wrote 'loud budgeting is in'. I'm tired of spending money and I don't want to pretend to be rich," Lukas said. 

"That's how it started and then the TikTok comments were just obsessed with that original idea." 

This was the first time he mentioned it...

Lukas explained that it wasn't about "being poor" but about not being afraid of sharing your financial limits and "what's profitable for you personally". 

"It's not 'skip a coffee a day and you'll become a millionaire'."

While talking money has been seen as rude or taboo, he said it's something his generation is more comfortable doing. 

"I've seen more debate around the topic and I think people are really intrigued and attracted by the idea," he said. 

"It's just focusing your spending and time on things you enjoy and cutting out the things you might feel pressured to spend your money on."  

He has incorporated loud budgeting into his own life, telling his friends "it's free to go outside" and opting for cheaper dinner alternatives.

"Having the terminology and knowing it's a trend helps people understand it and there's no awkward conversation around it," he said. 

The trend has been a big hit with so-called American "finfluencers", or "financial influencers", but people in the UK have started practising it as well. 

Mia Westrap has taken up loud budgeting by embarking on a no-buy year and sharing her finances with her 11.3k TikTok followers. 

Earning roughly £2,100 a month, she spends around £1,200 on essentials, like rent, petrol and car insurance, but limits what else she can purchase. 

Clothes, fizzy drinks, beauty treatments, makeup, dinners out and train tickets are just some things on her "red list". 

The 26-year-old PHD student first came across the idea back in 2017, but decided to take up the challenge this year after realising she was living "pay check to pay check". 

She said her "biggest fear" in the beginning was that her friends wouldn't understand what she was doing, but she found loud budgeting helped. 

"I'm still trying my best to just go along with what everyone wants to do but I just won't spend money while we do it and my friends don't mind that, we don't make a big deal out of it," she said. 

So far, she has been able to save £1,700, and she said talking openly about her money has been "really helpful". 

"There's no way I could have got this far if I wasn't baring my soul to the internet about the money I have spent. It has been a really motivating factor."

Financial expert John Webb said loud budgeting has the ability to help many "feel empowered" and create a "more realistic" relationship with money.

"This is helping to normalise having open and honest conversations about finances," the consumer affair manager at Experien said. 

"It can also reduce the anxiety some might have by keeping their financial worries to themselves." 

However, he warned it's important to be cautious and to take the reality of life into consideration. 

"It could cause troubles within friendship groups if they're not on the same page as you or have different financial goals," he said.

"This challenge isn't meant to stop you from having fun, but it is designed to help people become more conscious and intentional when it comes to money, and reduce the stigma around talking about it." 

Rightmove's keyword tool shows Victorian-era houses are the most commonly searched period properties, with people drawn to their ornate designs and features.

Georgian and Edwardian-style are second and third respectively, followed by Tudor properties. Regency ranked in fifth place.

Rightmove property expert Tim Bannister said: "Home hunters continue to be captivated by the character and charm of properties that we see in period dramas.

"Victorian homes remain particularly popular, characterised by their historic charm, solid construction, and spacious interiors. You'll often find Victorian houses in some of the most desirable locations which include convenient access to schools and transport links."

Throughout the week Money blog readers have shared their thoughts on the stories we've been covering, with the most correspondence coming in on...

• A hotly contested debate on the best brand of tea
• Downsizing homes
• The cost of Michelin-starred food

Job interview mistakes

On Wednesday we reported on a new £12m ad from PG Tips in response to it falling behind rivals such as Twinings, Yorkshire Tea and Tetley....

We had lots of comments like this...

How on earth was the PG Tips advert so expensive? I prefer Tetley tea, PG Tips is never strong enough flavour for me. Shellyleppard

The reason for the sales drop with PG Tips could be because they increased the price and reduced the quantity of bags from 240 to 180 - it's obvious. Royston

And then this question which we've tried to answer below...

Why have PG Tips changed from Pyramid shape tea bags, to a square? Sam

Last year PG Tips said it was changing to a square bag that left more room for leaves to infuse, as the bags wouldn't fold over themselves.

We reported on data showing how downsizing could save you money for retirement - more than £400,000, in some regions, by swapping four beds for two.

Some of our readers shared their experiences...

We are downsizing and moving South so it's costing us £100k extra for a smaller place, all money from retirement fund. AlanNorth

Interesting read about downsizing for retirement. We recently did this to have the means to retire early at 52. However, we bought a house in the south of France for the price of a flat in our town in West Sussex. Now living the dream! OliSarah

How much should we pay for food?

Executive chef at London's two-Michelin-starred Ikoyi, Jeremy Chan, raised eyebrows when he suggested to the Money blog that Britons don't pay enough for restaurant food.

Ikoyi, the 35th best restaurant in the world, charges £320 for its tasting menu. 

"I don't think people pay enough money for food, I think we charge too little, [but] we want to always be accessible to as many people as possible, we're always trying our best to do that," he said, in a piece about his restaurant's tie up with Uber Eats... 

We had this in... 

Are they serious? That is two weeks' worth of food shopping for me, if the rich can afford this "tasting menu" then they need to be taxed even more by the government, it's just crazy! Steve T

If the rate of pay is proportionate to the vastly overpriced costs of the double Michelin star menu, I would gladly peel quail eggs for four-hour stints over continuing to be abused as a UK supply teacher. AndrewWard

Does this two-star Michelin star chef live in the real world? Who gives a toss if he stands and peels his quails eggs for four hours, and he can get the best turbot from the fishmonger fresh on a daily basis? It doesn't justify the outrageous price he is charging for his tasting menu. Topaztraveller

Chefs do make me laugh, a steak is just a steak, they don't make the meat! They just cook it like the rest of us, but we eat out because we can't be bothered cooking! StevieGrah

Finally, many of you reacted to this feature on common mistakes in job interviews...

Those 10 biggest mistakes people make in interviews is the dumbest thing I've ever read. They expect all that and they'll be offering a £25k a year job. Why wouldn't I want to know about benefits and basic sick pay? And also a limp handshake? How's that relevant to how you work? Jre90

Others brought their own tips...

Whenever I go for an interview I stick to three points: 1. Be yourself 2. Own the interview 3. Wear the clothes that match the job you are applying Kevin James Blakey

From Sunday, eligible working parents of children from nine-months-old in England will be able to register for access to up to 15 free hours of government-funded childcare per week.

This will then be granted from September. 

Check if you're eligible  here  - or read on for our explainer on free childcare across the UK.

Three and four year olds

In England, all parents of children aged three and four in England can claim 15 hours of free childcare per week, for 1,140 hours (38 weeks) a year, at an approved provider.

This is a universal offer open to all.

It can be extended to 30 hours where both parents (or the sole parent) are in work, earn the weekly minimum equivalent of 16 hours at the national minimum or living wage, and have an income of less than £100,000 per year.

Two year olds

Previously, only parents in receipt of certain benefits were eligible for 15 hours of free childcare.

But, as of last month, this was extended to working parents.

This is not a universal offer, however.

A working parent must earn more than £8,670 but less than £100,000 per year. For couples, the rule applies to both parents.

Nine months old

In September, this same 15-hour offer will be extended to working parents of children aged from nine months. From 12 May, those whose children will be at least nine months old on 31 August can apply to received the 15 hours of care from September.

From September 2025

The final change to the childcare offer in England will be rolled out in September 2025, when eligible working parents of all children under the age of five will be able to claim 30 hours of free childcare a week.

In some areas of Wales, the Flying Start early years programme offers 12.5 hours of free childcare for 39 weeks, for eligible children aged two to three. The scheme is based on your postcode area, though it is currently being expanded.

All three and four-year-olds are entitled to free early education of 10 hours per week in approved settings during term time under the Welsh government's childcare offer.

Some children of this age are entitled to up to 30 hours per week of free early education and childcare over 48 weeks of the year. The hours can be split - but at least 10 need to be used on early education.

To qualify for this, each parent must earn less than £100,000 per year, be employed and earn at least the equivalent of working 16 hours a week at the national minimum wage, or be enrolled on an undergraduate, postgraduate or further education course that is at least 10 weeks in length.

All three and four-year-olds living in Scotland are entitled to at least 1,140 hours per year of free childcare, with no work or earnings requirements for parents. 

This is usually taken as 30 hours per week over term time (38 weeks), though each provider will have their own approach.

Some households can claim free childcare for two-year-olds. To be eligible you have to be claiming certain benefits such as Income Support, Jobseeker's Allowance or Universal Credit, or have a child that is in the care of their local council or living with you under a guardianship order or kinship care order.

Northern Ireland

There is no scheme for free childcare in Northern Ireland. Some other limited support is available.

Working parents can access support from UK-wide schemes such as tax credits, Universal Credit, childcare vouchers and tax-free childcare.

Aside from this, all parents of children aged three or four can apply for at least 12.5 hours a week of funded pre-school education during term time. But over 90% of three-year-olds have a funded pre-school place - and of course this is different to childcare.

What other help could I be eligible for?

Tax-free childcare  - Working parents in the UK can claim up to £500 every three months (up to £2,000 a year) for each of their children to help with childcare costs. 

If the child is disabled, the amount goes up to £1,000 every three months (up to £4,000 a year).

To claim the benefit, parents will need to open a tax-free childcare account online. For every 80p paid into the account, the government will top it up by 20p.

The scheme is available until the September after the child turns 11.

Universal credit  - Working families on universal credit can claim back up to 85% of their monthly childcare costs, as long as the care is paid for upfront. The most you can claim per month is £951 for one child or £1,630 for two or more children.

Tax credits -  People claiming working tax credit can get up to 70% of what they pay for childcare if their costs are no more than £175 per week for one child or £300 per work for multiple children.

Two big economic moments dominated the news agenda in Money this week - interest rates and GDP.

As expected, the Bank of England held the base rate at 5.25% on Wednesday - but a shift in language was instructive about what may happen next.

Bank governor Andrew Bailey opened the door to a summer cut to 5%, telling reporters that an easing of rates at the next Monetary Policy Committee meeting on 20 June was neither ruled out nor a fait accompli.

More surprisingly, he suggested that rate cuts, when they start, could go deeper "than currently priced into market rates".

He refused to be drawn on what that path might look like - but markets had thought rates could bottom out at 4.5% or 4.75% this year, and potentially 3.5% or 4% next.

"To make sure that inflation stays around the 2% target - that inflation will neither be too high nor too low - it's likely that we will need to cut Bank rate over the coming quarters and make monetary policy somewhat less restrictive over the forecast period," Mr Bailey said.

You can read economics editor Ed Conway's analysis of the Bank's decision here ...

On Friday we discovered the UK is no longer in recession.

Gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.6% between January and March, the Office for National Statistics said.

This followed two consecutive quarters of the economy shrinking.

The data was more positive than anticipated.

"Britain is not just out of recession," wrote Conway. "It is out of recession with a bang."

The UK has seen its fastest growth since the tailend of the pandemic - and Conway picked out three other reasons for optimism.

1/ An economic growth rate of 0.6% is near enough to what economists used to call "trend growth". It's the kind of number that signifies the economy growing at more or less "normal" rates.

2/ 0.6% means the UK is, alongside Canada, the fastest-growing economy in the G7 (we've yet to hear from Japan, but economists expect its economy to contract in the first quarter).

3/ Third, it's not just gross domestic product that's up. So too is gross domestic product per head - the number you get when you divide our national income by every person in the country. After seven years without any growth, GDP per head rose by 0.4% in the first quarter.

GDP per head is a more accurate yardstick for the "feelgood factor", said Conway - perhaps meaning people will finally start to feel better off.

For more on where Friday's figures leaves us, listen to an Ian King Business Podcast special...

The Money blog is your place for consumer news, economic analysis and everything you need to know about the cost of living - bookmark news.sky.com/money .

It runs with live updates every weekday - while on Saturdays we scale back and offer you a selection of weekend reads.

Check them out this morning and we'll be back on Monday with rolling news and features.

The Money team is Emily Mee, Bhvishya Patel, Jess Sharp, Katie Williams, Brad Young and Ollie Cooper, with sub-editing by Isobel Souster. The blog is edited by Jimmy Rice.

If you've missed any of the features we've been running in Money this year, or want to check back on something you've previously seen in the blog, this archive of our most popular articles may help...

Loaves of bread have been recalled from shelves in Japan after they were found to contain the remains of a rat.

Production of the bread in Tokyo has been halted after parts of a "small animal" were found by at least two people.

Pasco Shikishima Corp, which produces the bread, said 104,000 packages have been recalled as it apologised and promised compensation.

A company representative told Sky News's US partner network, NBC News, that a "small black rat" was found in the bread. No customers were reported to have fallen ill as a result of ingesting the contaminated bread.

"We deeply apologise for the serious inconvenience and trouble this has caused to our customers, suppliers, and other concerned parties," the spokesman said.

Pasco added in a separate statement that "we will do our utmost to strengthen our quality controls so that this will never happen again. We ask for your understanding and your co-operation."

Japanese media reports said at least two people who bought the bread in the Gunma prefecture, north-west of Tokyo, complained to the company about finding a rodent in the bread.

Record levels of shoplifting appear to be declining as fewer shopkeepers reported thefts last year, new figures show. 

A survey by the Office for National Statistics shows 26% of retailers experienced customer theft in 2023, down from a record high of 28% in 2022.

This comes despite a number of reports suggesting shoplifting is becoming more frequent. 

A  separate ONS finding , which used police crime data, showed reports of shoplifting were at their highest level in 20 years in 2023, with law enforcements logging 430,000 instances of the crime.

Let's get you up to speed on the biggest business news of the past 24 hours. 

A privately owned used-car platform is circling Cazoo Group, its stricken US-listed rival, which is on the brink of administration.

Sky News has learnt that Motors.co.uk is a leading contender to acquire Cazoo's marketplace operation, which would include its brand and intellectual property assets.

The process to auction the used-car platform's constituent parts comes after it spent tens of millions of pounds on sponsorship deals in football, snooker and darts in a rapid attempt to gain market share.

The owner of British Airways has reported a sharp rise in profits amid soaring demand for trips and a fall in the cost of fuel.

International Airlines Group said its operating profit for the first three months of the year was €68m (£58.5m) - above expectations and up from €9m (£7.7m) during the same period in 2023.

The company, which also owns Aer Lingus, Iberia and Vueling, said earnings had soared thanks to strong demand, particularly over the Easter holidays.

The prospect of a strike across Tata Steel's UK operations has gained further traction after a key union secured support for industrial action.

Community, which has more than 3,000 members, said 85% voted in favour of fighting the India-owned company's plans for up to 2,800 job losses, the majority of them at the country's biggest steelworks in Port Talbot, South Wales.

Tata confirmed last month it was to press ahead with the closure of the blast furnaces at the plant, replacing them with electric arc furnaces to reduce emissions and costs.

In doing so, the company rejected an alternative plan put forward by the Community, GMB and Unite unions that, they said, would raise productivity and protect jobs across the supply chain.

Be the first to get Breaking News

Install the Sky News app for free