Banned Books Week

Banned Books Week was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in libraries, bookstores, and schools. Typically (but not always) held during the last week of September, the annual event highlights the value of free and open access to information and brings together the entire book community — librarians, educators, authors, publishers, booksellers, and readers of all types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas. 

By focusing on efforts across the country to remove or restrict access to books, Banned Books Week draws national attention to the harms of censorship. The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) compiles lists of challenged books as reported in the media and submitted by librarians and teachers across the country.

The Top 13 Most Challenged Books of 2022 are:

1. Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe 
2. All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson 
3. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison 
4. Flamer by Mike Curato 
5. (TIE) Looking for Alaska by John Green; The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
6. Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison
7. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie 
8. Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez 
9. (TIE) A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas; Crank by Ellen Hopkins 
10. (TIE) Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews; This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson 

Source: Banned Books Week. (2023). About. Banned Books Week. https://bannedbooksweek.org/about/