As of 2026, more books are being challenged and banned in the U.S. A banned book is a book that has been removed, restricted, or currently made unavailable in a school, library, or public group setting because of certain ideas and concepts inside the book. Mostly, when a book is banned, it is in the hope of protecting people, but that is not what most people see. However, most challenged books are still widely popular throughout school districts and public libraries.
Currently, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky are being challenged. The main reason these books are banned is the themes of sexual content, abuse, and violence, as well as themes of LGBTQ+ content and drug or alcohol use.
The reason most books are banned or challenged is because of themes of LGBTQ+, sexual content, the abuse of substances, drug and alcohol use, and race-related topics throughout the book. The most commonly challenged or banned books are 1984 by George Orwell, To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Great Babsty.
Banned books are easily seen as controlling freedom of speech and knowledge because the government takes away a book based on the content of its pages. Because of this, many dislike banning books and don’t see the use in trying to ban books. Students and kids are still able to find reading material, but it takes a little longer than it would when the reading content wasn’t in the library.
Story continues below advertisement
