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Banned Books Week: Explore banned and challenged books

In honor of Banned Books Week, FIRE’s First Amendment Library has launched a new resource dedicated to highlighting books that have been banned or challenged in the United States throughout history. A book is challenged when people call for it to be banned or removed from the public’s access — whether it be from an elementary school library, public library, or a high school suggested summer reading list. You may be shocked to find some of your favorite books on this list!

This list of books is by no means exhaustive and will expand in honor of Banned Books Week every year. Learn more about the challenges each book has faced by scrolling over its cover to reveal the reasons people called for censorship and additional facts about select censorship attempts. Many of the descriptions link to resources provided by the American Library Association, which takes on the important task of monitoring challenges to the public’s access to literature.

Some facts you’ll find include:

We hope our readers leave this resource feeling inspired to pick up a book they normally would not consider — if only because we have the freedom to do so.

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