Banned Books Week

Isn't it wonderful to have the freedom to read whatever you choose? Each year libraries celebrate intellectual freedom with Banned Books Week. You might have noticed our display of banned books in the Adult Department. We also have several books that have been previously banned or challenged in our ebook collection. Try some of them and fight censorship!

Here are some of the ebook titles:
The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman
Banned because the author is an atheist.

Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver
Challenged for sexual references.

Athletic Shorts and Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher
Banned for using racial slurs and profanity. 

Beloved and The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
Banned for "vulgar language, sexual explicitness, or violent imagery that is gratuitously employed."

Black Boy by Richard Wright
Banned because of sexual content.

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Banned for themes of sexuality, drug use and suicide.

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Banned for language and themes.

The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline B. Cooney
 Banned for sexual content and its challenge to authority.

The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Banned for controversial subject matter.

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Banned for sex violence and profanity.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Banned for graphic depictions of racism and sex.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Banned for depiction of sexual violence.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey
Banned for "vulgar language, sexual explicitness, or violent imagery that is gratuitously employed."

Ordinary People by Judith Guest

Banned for being "obscene" and "depressing."

Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld
Pulled from an accelerated reading program because a parent complained that the book was "pornographic."

Slaughter-House Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Removed from a required reading list after a parent complained that it contained vulgar language, violent imagery, and sexual content.

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
Banned for sexual explicitness.