Honestly, I don’t know why this week exists. I don’t know why books have been banned and/or challenged every year, month, week, and day of my life. I don’t understand why people can’t just let books be for readers and accept the world for what it is. Books are supposed to reflect the wider society, their characters, and their lifestyles, whether they are BIPOC, LGBTQ+, disabled, or speak a different language other than English. Books reflect life in the best way possible, and if “concerned” parents or teachers want to keep suppressing them, they are only suppressing the life their kids should have. It’s fine if parents have questions about the types of books their kids are reading. However, it’s not okay to force an opinion about books to librarians and school boards, pressuring them to get these books off the shelves. Those same books could make a huge difference to a child’s development.
Since this week is Banned Books Week, I thought it would be a good way to help celebrate the banned books that have shaped my life and my reading journey throughout the past couple of years.
2023
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky – While I’ve only seen the film adaptation of this book, I will say that the movie touched me in many ways. The movie intelligently depicts the thoughts experienced by a young boy, Charlie, of being afraid of making new friends after being bullied at a previous school. He meets a group of friends who show him how to embrace his true self and face his fears. While I understand the book had been challenged for sexually explicit details, LGBTQIA+ content, rape, drugs, and profanity, these are the realities that many teens like Charlie go through. It could give a young boy hope to see their experiences reflected through this book.
2022
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas – I read this book twice when it first came out in 2017 and have seen the movie countless times. The sheer impact of how Black people have been racially profiled by police still breaks my heart, years later. And the police brutality against Black America has only increased since the pandemic. As a young, Black female, I’m constantly reminded of how careful I need to be around law enforcement, and how easily things can escalate if I’m not careful. I shouldn’t have to be careful, but this is the way things are now.
The Hate U Give represents how quickly things can go from normal to tragedy in an instant. Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter loses her childhood friend Khalil to senseless gun violence, and her life is turned upside down. This book also helps with media perception and the ignorance of some people. The idea that this book is challenged for promoting anti-police agendas shows how fragile our justice system is.
2019
Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling – This may be the only book on this list that I have mixed feelings about. It’s no secret that I’ve loved this series since I was in elementary school, then the movies made me love them even more. I went to Harry Potter World in Florida when I was a senior in high school, and it was the most magical time of my life! This series has touched not only my life but many other young readers. However, as much as I love the series, I’m extremely disappointed in Rowling’s rhetoric against transgender women and the LGBTQ+ community. I find it so disheartening that this author, whose work has done so much to encourage friendship, family, bravery, and combating pure evil, has become so ignorant and disconnected from society. Do I think the books themselves should be banned? No, not necessarily. But I get why; there’s too much negativity behind the name now.
2015
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon – I remember reading this book in middle school or early high school, and being so fascinated by it. This is about a 15-year-old boy named Christopher who witnesses his neighbor’s dog being murdered and then relates his investigation of who or what killed the dog. I found out later that the character Christopher was written to have autism (formerly known as Asperger’s syndrome). I have autistic family members, so this book helped connect the dots on how people on the spectrum think. It’s not a perfect read, but it doesn’t deserve to be banned as much as it is.
2010
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins – This is one of my favorite book series and movie adaptations throughout my high school years. I feel like we’re living in a version of The Hunger Games, especially with our heated political climate, and with the election so close by. This book is so needed to reflect the social and media aspects of political agendas, rebellion, revolution, freedom, and being an unlikely hero for generations.
Remember that everyone has the freedom to choose what stories they want to read about.
Happy Banned Books Week!