The American Library Association (ALA) recently released a list of the Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2021, “Library staff in every state faced an unprecedented number of attempts to ban books. ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom tracked 729 challenges to library, school and university materials and services in 2021, resulting in more than 1,597 individual book challenges or removals. Most targeted books were by or about Black or LGBTQIA+ persons.”
The University Library at Sacramento State trusts our users to select books that pique their interest, offer an enjoyable escape, and, perhaps, provide new information that challenges their views.
The list of challenged books and how to access them in our collection can be found below:
- Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe
Banned, challenged, and restricted for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to have sexually explicit images.
- Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison
Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to be sexually explicit.
- All Boys Aren’t Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto by George M. Johnson
Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content, profanity, and because it was considered to be sexually explicit.
- Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez
Banned, challenged, and restricted for depictions of abuse and because it was considered to be sexually explicit.
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Banned and challenged for profanity, violence, and because it was thought to promote an anti-police message and indoctrination of a social agenda.
- The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Banned and challenged for profanity, sexual references and use of a derogatory term.
- Me and Earl and the Dying Girl: A Novel by Jesse Andrews
Banned and challenged because it was considered sexually explicit and degrading to women.
- The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
Banned and challenged because it depicts child sexual abuse and was considered sexually explicit.
- This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson
Banned, challenged, relocated, and restricted for providing sexual education and LGBTQIA+ content.
- Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin
Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to be sexually explicit.