Good morning! Coffee Cup and I are hanging out at the lap top this morning, and watching what appears to be the sun breaking through the clouds. I am thrilled to squeeze in another sunny day and have been watching the weather carefully as I am on for a large bike ride this Saturday in Itaska. I have decided that if the weather is “el yucko” I am instead going to the cities to an author event. As much as I want to ride bike, I do not want to be cold, damp, and miserable.
Today I wanted to remind everyone about the upcoming Banned Books Week. It starts this Saturday and is an event I got behind for the first time last year and I was shocked at what books were considered banned. Before I really followed what banned books were, I figured they had to be horrible books, filled with filth and language that would probably make your ears bleed. Turns out, that’s not true. My beloved To Kill A Mockingbird is a banned book. All the Harry Potter books are and just last night I discovered that Twilight was as well.
Twilight?
Yes, currently Twilight ranks the 5th most requested book to be banned by Libraries. The word is that the book has been criticized for sexual content .
(And here I was thinking that I likes the twilight series because it was not heavy in that area)
My Sisters Keeper by Jodi Piccoult also makes that same list – for offensive language, homosexuality, drugs, suicide, and violence.
If you have been on Twitter or around any book blogs lately you probably have heard about the recent banning of the book SPEAK by Laurie Halse Anderson. It is about a young girl who has been raped and her battle to speak up and speak out.
My plan next week, starting on Saturday is to review a banned book a day. I have quite a little reservation sheet at my local library. I will share with you the book, the review, and the information I find on why it is considered a banned book.
I hope you will take a look at this following list of books that are banned books. I would love to know which you have read, if any. I am going to highlight the ones that I have read. Which would you like to read?
Top banned list from 2000 – 2009
1 Harry Potter (series), by J.K. Rowling
2 Alice series, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
3 The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
4 And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell
5 Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
6 I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
7 Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz
8 His Dark Materials (series), by Philip Pullman
9 TTYL; TTFN; L8R, G8R (series), by Myracle, Lauren
10 The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
11 Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers
12 It’s Perfectly Normal, by Robie Harris
13 Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey
14 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
15 The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison
16 Forever, by Judy Blume
17 The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
18 Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous
19 Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
20 King and King, by Linda de Haan
21 To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
22 Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily von Ziegesar
23 The Giver, by Lois Lowry
24 In the Night Kitchen, by Maurice Sendak
25 Killing Mr. Griffen, by Lois Duncan
26 Beloved, by Toni Morrison
27 My Brother Sam Is Dead, by James Lincoln Collier
28 Bridge To Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson
29 The Face on the Milk Carton, by Caroline B. Cooney
30 We All Fall Down, by Robert Cormier
31 What My Mother Doesn’t Know, by Sonya Sones
32 Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya
33 Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson
34 The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things, by Carolyn Mackler
35 Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging, by Louise Rennison
36 Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
37 It’s So Amazing, by Robie Harris
38 Arming America, by Michael Bellasiles
39 Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane
40 Life is Funny, by E.R. Frank
41 Whale Talk, by Chris Crutcher
42 The Fighting Ground, by Avi
43 Blubber, by Judy Blume
44 Athletic Shorts, by Chris Crutcher
45 Crazy Lady, by Jane Leslie Conly
46 Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
47 The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby, by George Beard
48 Rainbow Boys, by Alex Sanchez
49 One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey
50 The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
51 Daughters of Eve, by Lois Duncan
52 The Great Gilly Hopkins, by Katherine Paterson
53 You Hear Me?, by Betsy Franco
54 The Facts Speak for Themselves, by Brock Cole
55 Summer of My German Soldier, by Bette Green
56 When Dad Killed Mom, by Julius Lester
57 Blood and Chocolate, by Annette Curtis Klause
58 Fat Kid Rules the World, by K.L. Going
59 Olive’s Ocean, by Kevin Henkes
60 Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson
61 Draw Me A Star, by Eric Carle
62 The Stupids (series), by Harry Allard
63 The Terrorist, by Caroline B. Cooney
64 Mick Harte Was Here, by Barbara Park
65 The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien
66 Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, by Mildred Taylor
67 A Time to Kill, by John Grisham
68 Always Running, by Luis Rodriguez
69 Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
70 Harris and Me, by Gary Paulsen
71 Junie B. Jones (series), by Barbara Park
72 Song of Solomon, by Toni Morrison
73 What’s Happening to My Body Book, by Lynda Madaras
74 The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold
75 Anastasia (series), by Lois Lowry
76 A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving
77 Crazy: A Novel, by Benjamin Lebert
78 The Joy of Gay Sex, by Dr. Charles Silverstein
79 The Upstairs Room, by Johanna Reiss
80 A Day No Pigs Would Die, by Robert Newton Peck
81 Black Boy, by Richard Wright
82 Deal With It!, by Esther Drill
83 Detour for Emmy, by Marilyn Reynolds
84 So Far From the Bamboo Grove, by Yoko Watkins
85 Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes, by Chris Crutcher
86 Cut, by Patricia McCormick
87 Tiger Eyes, by Judy Blume
88 The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood
89 Friday Night Lights, by H.G. Bissenger
90 A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L’Engle
91 Julie of the Wolves, by Jean Graighead George
92 The Boy Who Lost His Face, by Louis Sachar
93 Bumps in the Night, by Harry Allard
94 Goosebumps (series), by R.L. Stine
95 Shade’s Children, by Garth Nix
96 Grendel, by John Gardner
97 The House of the Spirits, by Isabel Allende
98 I Saw Esau, by Iona Opte
99 Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume
100 America: A Novel, by Frank, E.R.
Top Banned from 1990 – 1999
Scary Stories (Series), by Alvin Schwartz
Daddy’s Roommate, by Michael Willhoite
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
Forever, by Judy Blume
Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson
Heather Has Two Mommies, by Leslea Newman
The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
The Giver, by Lois Lowry
My Brother Sam is Dead, by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
It’s Perfectly Normal, by Robie Harris
Alice (Series), by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Goosebumps (Series), by R.L. Stine
A Day No Pigs Would Die, by Robert Newton Peck
The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
Sex, by Madonna
Earth’s Children (Series), by Jean M. Auel
The Great Gilly Hopkins, by Katherine Paterson
In the Night Kitchen, by Maurice Sendak
The Witches, by Roald Dahl
A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L’Engle
The New Joy of Gay Sex, by Charles Silverstein
Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous
The Goats, by Brock Cole
The Stupids (Series), by Harry Allard
Anastasia Krupnik (Series), by Lois Lowry
Final Exit, by Derek Humphry
Blubber, by Judy Blume
Halloween ABC, by Eve Merriam
Julie of the Wolves, by Jean Craighead George
Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane
The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters, by Lynda Madaras
Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers
The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood
The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton
The Pigman, by Paul Zindel
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
We All Fall Down, by Robert Cormier
Deenie, by Judy Blume
Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes
Annie on my Mind, by Nancy Garden
Beloved, by Toni Morrison
The Boy Who Lost His Face, by Louis Sachar
Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat, by Alvin Schwartz
Harry Potter (Series), by J.K. Rowling
Cujo, by Stephen King
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl
A Light in the Attic, by Shel Silverstein
Ordinary People, by Judith Guest
American Psycho, by Bret Easton Ellis
Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
Sleeping Beauty Trilogy, by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
Bumps in the Night, by Harry Allard
Asking About Sex and Growing Up, by Joanna Cole
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons, by Lynda Madaras
The Anarchist Cookbook, by William Powell
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume
Boys and Sex, by Wardell Pomeroy
Crazy Lady, by Jane Conly
Athletic Shorts, by Chris Crutcher
Killing Mr. Griffin, by Lois Duncan
Fade, by Robert Cormier
Guess What?, by Mem Fox
Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
Lord of the Flies, by William Golding
Native Son by Richard Wright
Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies, by Nancy Friday
Curses, Hexes and Spells, by Daniel Cohen
On My Honor, by Marion Dane Bauer
The House of Spirits, by Isabel Allende
Jack, by A.M. Homes
Arizona Kid, by Ron Koertge
Family Secrets, by Norma Klein
Mommy Laid An Egg, by Babette Cole
Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo A. Anaya
Where Did I Come From?, by Peter Mayle
The Face on the Milk Carton, by Caroline Cooney
Carrie, by Stephen King
The Dead Zone, by Stephen King
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain
Song of Solomon, by Toni Morrison
Always Running, by Luis Rodriguez
Private Parts, by Howard Stern
Where’s Waldo?, by Martin Hanford
Summer of My German Soldier, by Bette Greene
Tiger Eyes, by Judy Blume
Little Black Sambo, by Helen Bannerman
Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett
Running Loose, by Chris Crutcher
Sex Education, by Jenny Davis
Jumper, by Steven Gould
Christine, by Stephen King
The Drowning of Stephen Jones, by Bette Greene
That Was Then, This is Now, by S.E. Hinton
Girls and Sex, by Wardell Pomeroy
The Wish Giver, by Bill Brittain
Jump Ship to Freedom, by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
Book Journey 
Sheila, I was surprised to find books I’ve read on the list as well. I posted about a store display I came across last week; and will be posting about Banned Books Week again as well. Just glancing through your list, I found ten books I’ve read and many more that are on my TBR.
That’s great Donna! I was at my library yesterday and was sad to see they have nothing up for banned Books week and no events either.
I know my list in not inclusive – there are thousands of books… but this is the top 100 of the last two decades. 🙂
Some people need to get a life and stop interfering in other peoples – I can’t believe that all these books were banned!
How are you going to manage a book a day? I’m in awe 🙂
Some are kids books Book Whisperer. And whats funny is I am actually listening to one of the Harry Potter book son audio right now in my car and i should be done with it yet this week. I can use that as one as it is on the list. 😀
Wow, a book a day?? I’m shooting for three banned or challenged titles I’ve never read over the course of the week. I’ll be watching for your reviews!
HI Erin, not all books will be hefty… I was careful choosing smaller reads 😀
Sitting here with a cup of coffee, reading your post and thinking about Banned Book Week. Sounds fun. I think I’ll pick one of the top 5 to read.
Your lucky you have sun, we haven’t had sun in a week, just dreary rainy days, so depressing!
Fall here we come!
Natalie :0)
I am excited to see what everyone reads Natalie. I have an I read banned Books button somewhere… I must find it….LOL 😀
I love how boundless your energy (seemingly) is!
One I absolutely loved (that you haven’t read) is A Prayer for Owen Meany.
LOVE that you said seemingly …. LOL 😛 Sometimes I could just rest my head on the keyboard…..
I am going to add that one to my library list Hannah, thanks for that info… 😀
But the thing is, you don’t (as far as I know, anyway) just rest your head on the keyboard. 😛
I look forward to seeing what books you end up reviewing next week.
Actually, I’m not surprised to find books I loved on that list…that’s the story of my life! lol
After all, I’m a child of the sixties, a flower child and rebel. lol
One of the first books I read at age eight was Huck Finn (after Tom Sawyer).
Hey, I have an idea. This list could be the “go-to” one for all the books one should read…a bucket list.
That’s a great idea Laurel, although there are some on the list I really have no interest in reading…LOL
I plan to embrace the week to its fullest – or maybe i should say my fullest! I should look for a banned book on audio as I am almost done with my current one on my IPOD.
What a list! I have read many and now I feel the need to read many more from the list – what does that say that I want to read more now that I know they are ‘banned’?
Some of the books on the list crack me up. My kids have every Captain Underpants book ever written and while we have and read ‘In the Night Kitchen’ many times when they were little I did think the naked kid falling into the milk was a little gross 🙂 Thankfully they never felt the need to do that themselves.
Where’s Waldo??? Seriously?
Sandi,
You are like me – you see some really good titles on this list and you want to read it to be rebellious and show that censorship is wrong! 😀
I have not read In The Night Kitchen but I am planning to as one of the reviews I will do next week. I have it reserved at the library.
Oh and Waldo….. well, I always thought he was a bit shady….. Just kidding! 😛
Interesting topic-there is a difference between banning and boycotting boys-I must say I sometimes wonder why libraries buy certain books-Julia and Julia for instance-which I though was trash-just cursing this that and the other and do I care about her sex life-?
However what do I know it did become a movie.
Esme you know I really disliked that book too…. and the follow up (Cleave) I tried to listen to on audio and had to stop. Horrible….
What in the.. what is Junie B Jones doing on there? I read my niece all of those stories and they are the topics of great conversation between she and I on right and wrong.
Isnt that fun Lydia – I looked up the reasons why these books were banned and what I found is that the character of Junie B Jones is apparently prone to trouble and talking back to teachers. While she is the narrator of the story, she struggles with grammar which “the banners” find the books to teach poor grammar and to promote prankish and unruly behavior.
If your dance card isn’t full and you haven’t read it already, why not try the recently banned The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. Here is the story from Sept. 9th. http://www.semissourian.com/story/1663154.html I’ve read this tile and really enjoyed it.
Amcatoir – Love that – I am going to make room on my “dance card” just because you really made me smile with this comment. 😀
well, it seems to me that most banned books are reactionary. In other words, someone gets an inkling of what inside the pages, and without reading it, condemns the book. For instance, The Handmaid’s Tale, for the life of me, I am trying to understand why that was banned. Maybe for the sex??? Dunno. Sheila, do you have a resource that states why the book was banned?
I have added Brave New World to my list. If I were more prepared about Banned Books week, I would post about them like you plan to. Oh well, next year. I look forward to your posts.
I am actually enjoying looking this information up and on the book the Handmaid’s tale it is challenged because it is said to be anti-Christian and pornographic.
Thanks Deanna! 😀
Well, I must be a banned book lover, because I have read several of these books and had no idea they were banned.
Some observations I can make from this list:
Some of the books I have read on the list, were required reading when I was in high school, Catcher in the Rye, Lord of the Flies, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Go figure!
And some of these books I have allowed my daughters ages 10 & 12 to read, including the Goosebumps series, Captain Underpants series, books by Judy Blume and the Junie B. Jones series…. very interesting!
Since this is my first year of book blogging I am still not very informed about a lot of things…. Great Post, very informative!
Deb, last year I was uninformed too and was amazed at all the titles that were considered banned books. While I had not read any of the Junie B Jones books I have read most of what Judy Blume wrote and love some of those reads to this day.
Look on line at banned books…. there are so many more out there. 🙂
It seems like all the best books get put on these lists. I think it is a badge of honor to be challenged – the people who challenge are morons, but it means that authors have written about things that are hard enough to deal with that some people think it should just be shut away and ignored.
Thanks to all the authors who refuse to ignore the hard things and write about them with passion and have helped us all deal with the tough things.
Great point Caitie, authors do sometimes need to take the road less traveled and while some topics may seem harsh or hard to read, there are lessons within them.
Take Speak for instance, I have not read this book but I plan to and while going in I know what the topic is, and that it is a hard one that will probably leave me emotionally spent, if it gives a voice to someone who may have otherwise stayed silent, then it is worth it all.
I would say once a year I hear of a book being challenged in my district – and those are the ones I hear about!
Books are safe in a book blogger’s community!
Hi Alison! 😀
Just doing a little research last night I was surprised to see some newer titles being challenged.
I like how you said that, “Books are safe in a Book Blogger’s Community” I think you could make a post out of that!
I am participating in Banned Book Week also. I have only chosen three books to read. I am looking very forward to your reviews:)
Bobbie I will be looking forward to yours as well. 🙂
Thank you for highlighting this very important topic. I was so incensed when I discovered how many books are banned in this country that I made a donation to the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE). Their website is http://www.abffe.com, and there suggestions for a lot of different ways to get involved in supporting Banned Books Week posted on this site. Thank you!
Thanks for the link M.L. Malcolm! 🙂
Great plan, and thank you for posting those lists!
Thanks Amy, are you reading any Banned Books this next week?
I’m hoping to! I have some reviews scheduled but am going to have to modify my schedule somehow. It needs an overhaul. I want to read some, but don’t have any with me, so must cram in some reading when I get home this weekend!
I do have one post scheduled for it already though, at least!
I’m just amazed at how narrow minded some people are. I would read The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things – the book has to be cute with a title like that.
Kathy I laughed when I read that title…. 😛
Judy Blume had a lot of her books banned by the look of it… I read them as a teenager and loved them, never saw anything wrong with them.
I can’t believe Roald Dahl’s The Witches was banned either! I loved his books… so imaginative!
Nikki-ann I read all of Blume’s books too, in fact in those later pre teen years she was my favorite author and is one of the reasons I am such a reader today.
There is something wrong with our society when so many classic books are banned and ANYTHING goes on television these days. I just don’t get it.
Great point Jill… I was thinking about that with the Junie B Jones series. They are children s books banned because of how the main character talks back to teachers and uses poor grammar.
I cant help but think of the years of popularity the Simpson’s had with a main character that made me cringe.
Thanks for posting this list Sheila. I’ve read several of
the and can’t believe they are on the list.
Kind of blows your mind doesn’t it Diane?
Many of these books were required reading when I was in school… To Kill A Mockingbird, Flowers for Algernon, Brave New World, Of Mice & Men and now they’re on banned books lists. And Judy Blume was read by all the girls that I knew, we read the books and passed ’em around.
Autumn I wish they would have been required in school for me. We read none of these… my only required reading was The Lord Of The Rings and that was for Creative Writing class.
I am still trying to read some of the greats that I think I should have been offered during my school years.
His Dark Materials is such a wonderful series, so I hope you get around to reading it!
I will have to look at that series Trisha, would you believe I am unfamiliar with it? 🙂
I loved Judy Blume’s books — I cannot believe that Blubber was banned, I seem to remember that being one of her “tamer’ books.
Suzanne I could just Judy Blume my way through Banned Book week. I loved her books – Tales Of A Fourth Grade Nothing, Are You There God, Blubber…loved her! 😀
Looking at the list always makes me wonder what world the people who file the complaints live on. One year when I was doing a Banned Book program and we were at the display, I had the best response yet. I had 3 children in the group who were home schooled and restricted in what they could read or view. Harry Potter was definitely on the NO list. The 6th grade son listened to my explanation of why the books were there and looked at the books. He said “That isn’t right. My parents can tell us what we can’t read, but they don’t have the right to tell anybody else what to read.” Personally, he hit the nail square on the head. If parents don’t want their children to read any of those books, they have the right and responsibility to prevent them. Removing temptation isn’t the answer. If I want my child to have wider options, they should be available. At some point these children will have to go out into the real world and they need to know what to expect and how to cope with it.
As for adults, MYOB. There are a lot of books out there I don’t care for, but some people like them, so let them read them. As long as no one has been hurt in the making of the book (thinking here of pictures and child porn) let it be.
Great comment Pat.
What I found interesting when I started looking into this after reading Halse Anderson’s tweet was that there are every bit as many books banned because they are not PC as for sex or profanity or homosexuality. Come on people, these are books about life–and life isn’t always pretty.
I’m going to get the first Captain Underpants book from the library to read to my son during the week. I’m also considering reading Harry Potter finally. I won the first one a few months ago but haven’t read it yet. I don’t know if I’ll have time to fit it in though. I will try to put up a post about the banned books I have read though. There aren’t many but I’ve read a few on those lists.