Top ten most frequently challenged books of 2007
Out of 420 challenges reported to the Office for Intellectual Freedom
- And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
Reasons: anti-ethnic, anti-family, homosexuality, religious viewpoint, sexism, and unsuited to age group - The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit, violence - Olive’s Ocean, by Kevin Henkes
Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit - The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman
Reason: religious viewpoint - The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
Reason: racism - The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
Reasons: homosexuality, offensive language, sexually explicit - ttyl, by Lauren Myracle
Reasons: offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group - I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
Reason: sexually explicit - It’s Perfectly Normal, by Robie Harris
Reasons: sex education and sexually explicit - The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
Reasons: homosexuality, offensive language, sexually explicit, and unsuited to age group
OIF receives reports from libraries, schools, and the media on attempts to ban books and compiles this information into lists in order to inform the public about censorship in libraries and schools. The ALA condemns censorship and works to ensure free access to information. For more information on ALA's efforts to condemn censorship, please explore Banned Books Week: Celebrating Your Freedom to Read.
The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) does not claim comprehensiveness in recording challenges. Research suggests that for each challenge reported there are as many as four or five which go unreported.
