JALSA’s 2023 Chanukah Banned Book Gift Guide
Chanukah Banned Book Gift Guide
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
The Bluest Eye tells the story of Pecola, a young Black girl growing up after the Great Depression, who develops an obsessive desire for blue eyes after being constantly told she is ugly because of her dark skin. The book was the second-most banned book of the 2022-2023 school year, and received two challenges in Massachusetts.
Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi
Yolk is the humorous story of two Korean-American sisters who were once close but are now estranged - until one of them gets cancer and her sister is the only person who can help her. This funny and emotional novel was banned in Texas and South Carolina in 2023.
Jane Against the World by Karen Blumenthal
Jane Against the World examines the history of abortion rights in the United States from the nineteenth century, through Roe v. Wade, and now to the ongoing fight for abortion rights in this country. This book has been challenged in Wyoming and Texas.
Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
Parable of the Sower is a speculative fiction classic set in 2024. It follows Lauren, a woman who becomes displaced in a post-apocalyptic America ravaged by climate change and wealth inequality, who has the ability to feel the pain of others. The book was banned most recently in Texas in 2023.
Fun Home by Alison Bechdel
Fun Home is a graphic memoir about the author’s youth in rural Pennsylvania, as she grows in her identity as a lesbian and navigates her dysfunctional family relationships, particularly with her father who is a closeted gay man. Fun Home was one of the top ten most challenged books of 2022 and has faced banning around the country since 2006.
Chanukah Banned Book Gift Guide For Young Adult Readers
This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson
This Book Is Gay is a humorous young adult non-fiction book written as an instruction manual for young queer people discovering their sexual and gender identity. The book has been challenged three times this year in Massachusetts.
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds & Brendan Kiely
All American Boys explores the themes of racism and police brutality through the perspectives of a Black teenage boy who is assaulted by police and another Black teenage boy who witnesses the assault. The book received 14 challenges in 2022.
The Grief Keeper by Alexandra Villasante
The Grief Keeper tells the story of teenager Marisol. She and her sister are forced to flee El Salvador after facing homophobia and death threats, but when they arrive in the U.S., they are detained by ICE. Facing deportation, Marisol is given a chance for asylum if she participates in a dystopian scientific study. The novel was banned in Texas in 2022.
All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson
All Boys Aren’t Blue is a series of essays that reflect on the author’s coming of age, as well as the trials and triumphs faced by Black queer boys. The book was the second most challenged book of the 2021-2022 school year, has been challenged three times in Massachusetts in 2023, and received a criminal complaint in Florida.
Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe
Gender Queer is an “intensely cathartic” graphic autobiography about the author’s journey of understanding their gender and sexual identity as a nonbinary and asexual person. This book was a top-five most banned book of the 2022-2023 school year and has received two challenges in Massachusetts.
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