Banned Books Week  Tags: banned_books  

At the top of this page you will notice several tabs at the top left-hand side. Click on the titles of each tab in order to navigate to different parts of the Banned Books Week guide.

   Banned Books Week emphasizes the freedom to choose or to express one's opinion, even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular, as well as the importance of ensuring the availability of those viewpoints to all who wish to read them.

   The week is called "Banned Books Week" although the majority of the books featured during the week are not banned, but have been challenged.  A challenge is an attempt to ban or restrict materials.  A successful challenge would result in materials being banned or restricted.  Imagine how many more books might be challenged -and possibly banned or restricted -if not for the efforts of librarians, teachers, and booksellers who use Banned Books Week to teach the importance of our First Amendment rights.  The number of challenges reflects only incidents reported, and for each reported, four or five remain unreported.

Since 2009 is not over yet, ALA does not have the complete statistics on the most frequently challenged books of this year.  Therefore, we present you with last year's top books. Enjoy.