Banned & Challenged Books Every Tween and Teen Should Read
You can’t please everyone. Every book will have its fans and its foes. But restricting reading for another person or group of people? That goes too far.
Those who ban books believe that not only are banned books not appropriate for their own kids, they’re not appropriate for anyone else’s kids. Their biggest complaints usually center on the following issues: homosexuality, witchcraft, sex, profanity, alcohol use, violence, anti-God / religion.
But, I’ll give them one thing. Ideas are powerful. Ideas in books can ignite discovery, encourage empathy, and offer solace. (Among other things.) With that in mind, here are 22 banned and challenged books that are worth reading (maybe more than once) for their ideas.
This list originally appeared on ReadBrightly.com.
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1
Add to BookshelfThe Outsiders 50th Anniversary Edition
by S. E. Hinton
CHALLENGED FOR: conflict, crime, death of a character
S. E. Hinton’s groundbreaking classic — now available in a 50th anniversary edition — centers on two rival groups of teen boys, the Greasers and the Socs, who are divided by unassailable class differences in 1965 Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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2
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The Bluest Eye
by Toni Morrison
BANNED AND CHALLENGED FOR: rape, incest, teen pregnancy
For many readers, The Bluest Eye is their introduction to Toni Morrison. It tells the powerful and harrowing story of Pecola Breedlove, a young black girl desperate for the blonde hair and blue eyes she believes will make others accept her.
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$16.00Buy from Other Retailers:
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3
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All the Bright Places
by Jennifer Niven
CHALLENGED FOR: sexual content, mental illness, teen suicide
Finch and Violet meet at a pivotal moment in their lives, and what unfolds is a meaningful romance between two young people struggling openly and honestly with grief and depression. Billed for fans of The Fault in Our Stars (another banned title).
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$10.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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4
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Two Boys Kissing
by David Levithan
BANNED AND CHALLENGED FOR: sex, homosexuality
In this novel based on true events, two teen boys’ attempt to beat the world record for the longest kiss provides the backdrop for a larger meditation on acceptance and love. It is skillfully written and simultaneously heartbreaking and heartwarming.
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5
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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
by Maya Angelou
BANNED FOR: childhood rape, racism
Reading this powerful story is like stepping into the shoes of a poor Black girl in the South. We discover that despite all of life’s hardships, the wounded can heal. They can even sing. What’s even more powerful is that the story is autobiographical.
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$18.00Buy from Other Retailers:
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6
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Last Night at the Telegraph Club
by Malinda Lo
CHALLENGED FOR: homosexuality, sexual content
A lesbian romance set in 1954 between a Chinese American teen and a white classmate, is a beautiful coming-of-age story of love and identity.
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$11.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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7
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Looking for Alaska
by John Green
BANNED AND CHALLENGED FOR: sex, profanity, homosexuality, undermining religious beliefs
Named the most challenged book of 2015, John Green’s debut novel centers on a teen seeking new adventure and happiness through his self-destructive yet alluring classmate. Now a limited series on Hulu, it’s an essential part of the John Green canon.
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$12.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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8
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Out of Darkness
by Ashley Hope Pérez
BANNED AND CHALLENGED FOR: abuse, sex
This award-winning historical YA novel takes place in East Texas, 1937. A young Mexican American girl falls in love with a Black boy in a segregated town. Their relationship gets challenged from every side, and the teens face discrimination, racism, and heartache in their fight for love.
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$12.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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9
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The Witches
by Roald Dahl
BANNED FOR: witchcraft, misogyny
This is a hilarious story about a young boy who discovers that witches hate all children. With help from his Grandmamma, he outwits the witches, turning them into mice.
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$17.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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10
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It’s Perfectly Normal
by Robie H. Harris
BANNED FOR: nudity, sex, abortion, homosexuality
I think information is power — or at least if not power, it’s really, really helpful. This controversial book covers everything about puberty and sex that kids wonder about. Seeing the illustrations of naked bodies may be uncomfortable for parents, but I think it’s a great way to empower and educate.
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$24.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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11
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His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass (HBO Tie-In Edition)
by Philip Pullman
BANNED FOR: anti-God
An adventure of heroic children, villainous adults, fantastical creatures, and a challenging quest make this an entertaining and award-winning fantasy novel.
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$12.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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12
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Beyond Magenta
by Susan Kuklin
CHALLENGED FOR: LGBTQIA+ content, sexual content
This book goes behind the scenes and gives readers a peek into the lives of six transgender and gender-neutral teenagers. Photos, stories, hope, and heartache come together on the page, offering a realistic view of the triumphs and tragedies of these real-life teens.
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$15.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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13
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Lord of the Flies
by William Golding
BANNED FOR: violence, profanity
Often used as a class book in middle school, this thought-provoking allegory of the human condition forces you to notice and think about the real-life connections to the story. Yes, real life is often disturbing.
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$12.00Buy from Other Retailers:
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14
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Trash
by Andy Mulligan
CHALLENGED FOR: language, anti-police sentiment
Adapted for film in 2015, Trash is the story of three boys living in extreme poverty, who find something in a dumpsite that propels them on a heroic journey to restore justice.
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$11.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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15
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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
by Mark Twain
CHALLENGED FOR: language
Mark Twain’s classic follows the adventures and exploits of young Huck Finn and runaway slave Jim — two friends who raft down the Mississippi through a Southern antebellum society where they’re repeatedly confronted with racism and corruption.
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$18.00Buy from Other Retailers:
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16
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Persepolis
by Marjane Satrapi
BANNED AND CHALLENGED FOR: graphic language and images
Marjane Satrapi’s widely hailed graphic memoir is a stunning coming-of-age tale about growing up in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution. Narrated by Satrapi, a precocious only child, it’s simultaneously an intimate story and a treatise on the devastations of war.
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$16.00Buy from Other Retailers:
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17
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The Kingdom of Little Wounds
by Susann Cokal
CHALLENGED FOR: violence, rape, sexual content
A seamstress, a maid, and a princess tackle literal and figurative illnesses in this spellbinding story set in Scandinavia. The book combines politics, romance, and deception to create a breathtaking novel for readers who love fairy tales and history.
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$14.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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18
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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
by Rebecca Skloot
CHALLENGED FOR: female anatomy
Rebecca Skloot’s investigation into the woman behind HeLa cells — which changed medicine forever — led her to the life and legacy of Henrietta Lacks, a poor Southern tobacco farmer whose tissue samples were taken without her consent while she was being treated for cervical cancer in 1951.
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$18.99Buy from Other Retailers:
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19
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Invisible Man
by Ralph Ellison
CHALLENGED FOR: language, sexual content, racism
Invisible Man won the National Book Award in 1953 and established Ralph Ellison as a voice of American literature. It tells the story of a nameless black narrator who moves from the South to Harlem and navigates intolerance and indifference in early twentieth-century America.
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$17.00Buy from Other Retailers:
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20
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Prep
by Curtis Sittenfeld
CHALLENGED FOR: sexual content
Lee Fiora feels like an outsider at Ault, a prestigious boarding school in Massachusetts. Her experiences over the next four years — which build to a self-destructive peak — make for a poignant examination of adolescence and its many angsts.
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$18.00Buy from Other Retailers:
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21
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Real Live Boyfriends
by E. Lockhart
BANNED AND CHALLENGED FOR: sexual content
E. Lockhart’s fourth book in the Ruby Oliver quartet is the most controversial, dealing with common issues teenagers face. As Ruby interviews her friends for a film project, she uncovers some uncomfortable truths about life, love, and friendship.
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$14.00Buy from Other Retailers:
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22
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Dear Martin
by Nic Stone
BANNED AND CHALLENGED FOR: language, racism
Written in response to the deaths of Jordan Davis and Michael Brown, Nic Stone’s Dear Martin tells of a teenage Black boy, who, after a run-in with white police officers, writes to the late Martin Luther King, Jr. for advice.
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$12.99Buy from Other Retailers:
