While Kelly Jensen is off this week, editors Danika Ellis and Erica Ezeifedi are covering censorship news. The first two stories are from Danika and the last two are from Erica.
Among the most recent censorship news includes a list of the 10 most challenged books of 2024, the ALA suing DOGE over gutting the IMLS, Nevada lawmakers introducing a bill making it illegal to harass librarians who are doing their jobs, and more.
These are the 10 Most Challenged Books of 2024
The American Library Association has released its list of the most challenged books of 2024. It’s part of the 2025 State of America’s Libraries Report, which also revealed that most of these bans and challenges are not initiated by students or parents. Pressure groups and government entities were responsible for a whopping 72% of censorship attempts.
2024 had the third highest number of challenges since ALA started tracking in 1990, but the organization emphasizes that book bans and challenges are underreported, so this number is likely higher. Many libraries are also now restricted in the material they can bring in and/or are practicing self-censorship by not acquiring titles that could be challenged.
As for the titles targeted, it’s the same old story. Books about queer people and people of color receive the most censorship attempts, as well as anything deemed controversial, regardless of literary quality or relevance to young readers’ lives. All Boys Aren’t Blue and Gender Queer top the list: both are memoirs by queer people whose very existence is deemed obscene by book banners. Even being a Pulitzer Prize-winning author isn’t enough to keep you off this list, as the inclusion of The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison demonstrates.
Ellen Hopkins has two books in the top ten: her YA books deal with teen struggles, such as with addiction. The inspiration for the main character in Crank came from her eldest daughter’s experiences. In an interview with Publishers Weekly, she said, “I really want both books [in the Crank series] to be an honest look at the depth and the nature of this addiction. It’s not that easy to shake, and I really wanted that to be made very clear.”
This is just one of many examples of book banners believing that real teens’ and children’s experiences are obscene, further isolating those who are struggling—or, in the case of queer and BIPOC readers, those who are looking for community.
Looking for Alaska has made it onto the list 20 years after its publication date. You can read more about its history with censorship over the decades in 20 Years of Banning Looking for Alaska.
Here are the ten most challenged books of 2024.
1. All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson
2. Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe
3. (TIE) The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
3. (TIE) The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
5. Tricks by Ellen Hopkins
6. (TIE) Looking for Alaska by John Green
6. (TIE) Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
8. (TIE) Crank by Ellen Hopkins
8. (TIE) Sold by Patricia McCormick
10. Flamer by Mike Curato
You can read more at the ALA website.
The ALA is Suing DOGE Over “Gutting” the IMLS
The American Library Association (ALA) and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), among other defendants, for “the Trump administration’s gutting of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).”
The lawsuit argues that DOGE’s actions against IMLS—including firing employees, ending the grant programs, and stopping all of the institute’s work—were illegal and unconstitutional. It claims that these actions violate Article I and Article II of the constitution. The organizations also say these actions will cause “immediate and disastrous consequences for Plaintiffs ALA and AFSCME as well as their members, including librarians, libraries, and the public,” continuing,
“Without grant funding or IMLS staff to process reimbursements, local and state libraries will suffer an immediate and irreparable inability to pay vendors or staff hired in reliance on IMLS’ promise to make these reimbursements. In addition, IMLS provides important day-to-day services and advice to libraries across the country, which has already ceased, causing irreparable harm.”
They further argue that “Congress is the only entity that may lawfully dismantle the agency, not the President and certainly not DOGE.”
ALA president Cindy Hohl said in a statement,
“Libraries play an important role in our democracy, from preserving history to providing access to government information, advancing literacy and civic engagement, and offering access to a variety of perspectives. These values are worth defending. We will not allow extremists to threaten our democracy by eliminating programs at IMLS and harming the children and communities who rely on libraries and the services and opportunities they provide.”
If you want to learn more about DOGE’s gutting of the IMLS, Kelly Jensen wrote an article about how the institute is being converted into a propaganda machine.
Read more about this lawsuit at Publishers Weekly.
Nevada Lawmakers Have Introduced a Bill to Ban Book Bans
Nevada lawmakers have introduced AB 416, a bill that seeks to protect residents’ access to public library materials and prohibit censorship. It’s meant to not only protect the freedom to read, but also library staff’s freedom to do their job without threat of harassment or jail. It goes the extra step, though, by introducing criminal consequences for people who try to “intimidate or harm others over library materials in public schools, public libraries, library districts, and institutions of higher education.”
And, it’s all based on facts. One of the bill’s sponsors, Assemblymember Britney Miller, said, “It’s not about the obscenity. The ALA (American Library Association) already said that one third of the books that were attempted to be censored were about racism or themes of racism. So this is what this agenda is really about.”
Read more at KUNR.org.
Nearly 400 Books Have Been Removed From the US Naval Academy
Almost 400 books have been removed from the US Naval Academy courtesy of the Pentagon implementing Trump’s policies on what his administration views as “DEI.” Among the removed books are classic titles, such as I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou.
Already, democratic lawmakers—Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.), specifically— fighting for America’s military institutions to maintain their academic rigor, freedom, and First Amendment rights. In a letter sent Monday, they demanded to know the process for the hundreds of books being removed, as well as the rationale behind the removal. They said, “This is a blatant attack on the First Amendment and a clear effort to suppress academic freedom and rigor at the United States Naval Academy. Moreover, it displays an alarming return to McCarthy-era censorship.”
It’s interesting to see how book banning has crossed from being within the realm of minors, specifically targeting K-12 public school libraries, and is now in the land of adults. The excuse of “wanting to protect children from inappropriate material” doesn’t quite hold up when the materials being banned are in adult institutions like the Naval Academy.
To read more, visit Diverse Education and USA Today.
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This week, we’re highlighting a post that celebrates the 100th anniversary of The Great Gatsby! Revisit F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic (and emblem of assigned reading) and get a crash course on the book’s history, including challenges encountered by its readers and adapters. Read on for an excerpt and become an All Access member to unlock the full post.
January 16, 2025, marked the 100th anniversary of the publication of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby. The New York Public Library celebrated with a party, following a special performance of the Broadway musical adaptation of the novel. Simon and Schuster recently released a new audiobook with an introduction by Jesmyn Ward.
The novel’s theme of reinventing oneself is timeless. The ideas of living a lie by reinventing yourself and wealth making people callous are equally resonant today. How did this novel become so influential, especially on other American novels, and a fixture on high school syllabi? Was it always a bestseller? What aspects of Gatsby hold up, and which ones have aged terribly?
Fitzgerald’s original title for The Great Gatsby was Trimalchio in West Egg. I think the publisher was right to change it. Trimalchio is a character from the ancient Roman work The Satyricon. Combined with the fictional West Egg neighborhood, this reference is cryptic. Gatsby is now an icon in his own right. He doesn’t need a classical allusion for us to notice the theme of excessive wealth.
In a 2014 NPR interview, Maureen Corrigan, the author of So We Read On: How The Great Gatsby Came to Be and Why It Endures, explained how Gatsby became popular. Initial reception was mixed, ranging from the headline “Fitzgerald’s Latest a Dud,” to Modernist poets like T. S. Eliot saying they loved it. When Fitzgerald died in 1940, Gatsby was unpopular (but not out of print). A few years later, it was republished for US service members in World War II, and 123,000 copies were given to members of the military through the Armed Services Editions.
After World War II, Gatsby was no longer an obscure book with mixed reviews. It was considered a classic and became a staple of countless high school syllabi. Constance Grady wrote that Gatsby was ideal for many 20th and early 21st-century English teachers’ emphasis on New Criticism. It’s a great choice for close readings of short passages and analyzing symbolism. However, historical context is also crucial and should never be downplayed, especially in terms of bias.
The Great Gatsby possibly condemns white supremacist theories but uses racist language elsewhere. Tom Buchanan reads white supremacist books and goes on racist rants. Daisy mocks him for this. It’s easy to read this as condemning Tom’s overall bigotry. However, Fitzgerald also expressed racist and antisemitic views in real life.
Sign up to become an All Access member for only $6/month and then click here to read the full, unlocked article. Level up your reading life with All Access membership and explore a full library of exclusive bonus content, including must-reads, deep dives, and reading challenge recommendations.
Source : These are the 10 Most Challenged Books of 2024: Book Censorship News, April 11, 2025
