Unfortunately, book bans are becoming more and more common throughout the United States. Conservative advocacy campaigns are targeting themes such as race, religion, and sexual content. Though they might contain tough or uncomfortable topics, reading banned books allows readers to learn about diverse perspectives, and it helps foster critical thinking skills. Here are four of my favorite classic children’s and young adult books that have been banned and why you should read them.
Content Warning: Racism, rape, death
To Kill a Mockingbird follows Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, a six-year-old girl growing up in the South in the 1930s. Scout, her older brother Jem, and their friend Dill develop a fascination with their reclusive Black neighbor, Arthur “Boo” Radley, and start a friendship with him despite never interacting in person. While the children grow to see Boo as a kind person, the other townspeople continue to treat him as a sort of boogeyman due to their racist prejudices. One day, the town judge appoints Atticus, Scout’s father and a lawyer, to defend Tim Robinson, a Black man who has been accused of raping a white woman. The alleged crime, and Atticus agreeing to defend Tim, throws the small southern town into turmoil. The novel deals with racism, a corrupt justice system, and people facing their own prejudices in an accessible way.
To Kill A Mockingbird is one of the most commonly banned books because of its themes of racism and rape and its use of racial slurs. However, the point of the book is to show how unjust the racism in the town is and that empathy is much stronger than prejudice. Though Scout loses some of her innocence when learning about the unfairness of the adult world, she ultimately learns that the truth—and fighting for what you believe in—is much more important than remaining ignorant.
Content Warning: Death
The story of Charlotte’s Web takes place on the Arable family farm, where the farmer’s daughter, Fern, saves a piglet from being slaughtered and raises him, naming him Wilbur. As Wilbur grows, Fern’s father eventually sells him to his brother-in-law, where Wilbur is introduced to the other animals in the barn, including a spider named Charlotte. Charlotte and Wilbur become good friends, and she comforts him when he learns that he is being raised only to be killed and eaten. Together, Charlotte and Wilbur must try to come up with a plan to save his life.
Charlotte’s Web was first banned in 2006. Some parents said that a book about talking animals was “blasphemous” and went against their faith, as having the animals talk meant they were on the same level as humans. Though the talking animals were not the only reason the book has been challenged—there is also mention of a character’s death—it is the most prominent. There is so much more to the book than the fact that the animals talk. The book’s main themes are compassion and friendship, and it teaches readers valuable lessons about love and sacrifice.
Content Warning: Death, bullying
Jess Aarons, a ten-year-old from Virginia, secretly wants to be an artist but his strict father disapproves. One day, a new girl named Leslie Burke moves to Jess’s town, and they become fast friends. The two escape from their lives by imagining a magical world called “Terabithia” that they enter by swinging over a creek with a rope. Together, Jess and Leslie must deal with the trials and tribulations of growing up.
Bridge to Terabithia has mainly been banned because of the use of the word “Lord” and the mention of witchcraft and magic. Some critics were also concerned that the use of imaginary magical worlds would confuse children. Even though the world of Terabithia is very prominent in the story, the real themes in the book are friendship, love, and loss.
Content Warning: Bullying
Following her father’s mysterious disappearance, thirteen-year-old Meg Murry meets a new neighbor, Mrs. Whatsit, who introduces her to an object called the tesseract. Meg discovers that her father was working on the tesseract before his disappearance, and she and her younger brother Charles depart on a mission to find their father. The two travel through the tesseract to different universes and dimensions, meeting supernatural beings and facing many challenges as they try to save their father from the evil being holding him captive.
A Wrinkle in Time has primarily been banned due to its mix of religion, the supernatural, and science fiction. According to The Banned Books Project at Carnegie Mellon University, Christians complained that the book lists “the name of Jesus Christ together with the names of great artists, philosophers, scientists, and religious leaders when referring to defenders of Earth against evil.” Books should not be banned just because they do not fall exactly in line with the beliefs of one specific group. The novel does not even criticize religion; it simply uses it in a different context than many Christians would like. This book explores sci-fi and fantasy in a really new and interesting way, and it teaches great lessons about love and courage.
Interested in reading other banned books? Check out this list of frequently challenged YA books created by the American Library Association.
Loren Ingold, Pine Reads Review Editor