Harry Potter Magically Reappears
at Top of ALA’s Most-Challenged List

For the fourth consecutive year, the best-selling Harry Potter series of children’s novels by J. K. Rowling tops the annual report of most-challenged books issued by the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom. The series, whose fifth novel Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is slated for release June 21, continues to worry some parents that the saga of a boy wizard might entice young readers to dabble in witchcraft.

Released January 13, the “Ten Most Challenged Books of 2002” also lists, in order of number of challenges:

• the Alice series by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, for sexually explicit language and age-inappropriateness;
• The Chocolate War (the most-challenged book of 1998) by Robert Cormier, for offensive language and age-inappropriateness;
• I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, for sexual content, racism, offensive language, violence, and age-inappropriateness;
• Taming the Star Runner by S. E. Hinton, for offensive language;
• the Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey, for encouraging children to disobey authority, insensitivity, and age-inappropriateness;
• The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, for racism, insensitivity, and offensive language;
• Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson, for offensive language, sexual content, and references to the occult and Satanism;
• Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor, for insensitivity, racism, and offensive language; and
• Julie of the Wolves by Julie Craighead George, for sexual content, offensive language, violence, and age-inappropriateness.

OIF received 515 reports of challenges in 2002, a 15% increase since 2001, according to Director Judith F. Krug.

Posted January 27, 2003.