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General Recommendations
Banned Books Week 2022
By:
ACL_KateA
Alameda County Library
Staff-created list
Here are a few fantastic banned books for you to read when celebrating Banned Books Week 2022! Along with last year's top 5 most banned books (recorded by the American Library Association), please enjoy a list of other books that deserve a spot on your TBR ("to be read") pile.
By:
ACL_KateA
Alameda County Library
22 items
22 items
A Memoir
by Kobabe, Maia
Book - 2022
"In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever w...Show more
"In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was the only thing e felt comfortable with strangers knowing about em. Now, Gender Queer is here. Maia's intensely cathartic autobiography charts eir journey of self-identity, which includes the mortification and confusion of adolescent crushes, grappling with how to come out to family and society, bonding with friends over erotic gay fanfiction, and facing the trauma and fundamental violation of pap smears. Started as a way to explain to eir family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual, Gender Queer is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity--what it means and how to think about it--for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere."
--Number #1 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
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"In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever w...Show more
"In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was the only thing e felt comfortable with strangers knowing about em. Now, Gender Queer is here. Maia's intensely cathartic autobiography charts eir journey of self-identity, which includes the mortification and confusion of adolescent crushes, grappling with how to come out to family and society, bonding with friends over erotic gay fanfiction, and facing the trauma and fundamental violation of pap smears. Started as a way to explain to eir family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual, Gender Queer is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity--what it means and how to think about it--for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere."
--Number #1 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
Show less
A Novel
Book - 2018
"Mike Muñoz is a young Mexican American not too many years out of high school--and just fired from his latest gig as a lawn boy on a landscaping crew...Show more
"Mike Muñoz is a young Mexican American not too many years out of high school--and just fired from his latest gig as a lawn boy on a landscaping crew. Though he tries time and again to get his foot on the first rung of that ladder to success, he can't seem to get a break. But then things start to change for Mike, and after a raucous, jarring, and challenging trip, he finds he can finally see the future and his place in it"
--Number #2 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
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"Mike Muñoz is a young Mexican American not too many years out of high school--and just fired from his latest gig as a lawn boy on a landscaping crew...Show more
"Mike Muñoz is a young Mexican American not too many years out of high school--and just fired from his latest gig as a lawn boy on a landscaping crew. Though he tries time and again to get his foot on the first rung of that ladder to success, he can't seem to get a break. But then things start to change for Mike, and after a raucous, jarring, and challenging trip, he finds he can finally see the future and his place in it"
--Number #2 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
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A Memoir-manifesto
Book - 2020
"In a series of personal essays, prominent journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist George M. Johnson explores his childhood, adolescence, and college years ...Show more
"In a series of personal essays, prominent journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist George M. Johnson explores his childhood, adolescence, and college years in New Jersey and Virginia. From the memories of getting his teeth kicked out by bullies at age five, to flea marketing with his loving grandmother, to his first sexual relationships, this young-adult memoir weaves together the trials and triumphs faced by Black queer boys"
--Number #3 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
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"In a series of personal essays, prominent journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist George M. Johnson explores his childhood, adolescence, and college years ...Show more
"In a series of personal essays, prominent journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist George M. Johnson explores his childhood, adolescence, and college years in New Jersey and Virginia. From the memories of getting his teeth kicked out by bullies at age five, to flea marketing with his loving grandmother, to his first sexual relationships, this young-adult memoir weaves together the trials and triumphs faced by Black queer boys"
--Number #3 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
Show less
Downloadable Audiobook - 2015
"'This is East Texas, and there's lines. Lines you cross, lines you don't cross. That clear?' New London, Texas. 1937. Naomi Vargas and Wash Fuller k...Show more
"'This is East Texas, and there's lines. Lines you cross, lines you don't cross. That clear?' New London, Texas. 1937. Naomi Vargas and Wash Fuller know about the lines in East Texas as well as anyone. They know the signs that mark them. They know the people who enforce them. But sometimes the attraction between two people is so powerful it breaks through even the most entrenched color lines. And the consequences can be explosive."
--Number #4 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
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"'This is East Texas, and there's lines. Lines you cross, lines you don't cross. That clear?' New London, Texas. 1937. Naomi Vargas and Wash Fuller k...Show more
"'This is East Texas, and there's lines. Lines you cross, lines you don't cross. That clear?' New London, Texas. 1937. Naomi Vargas and Wash Fuller know about the lines in East Texas as well as anyone. They know the signs that mark them. They know the people who enforce them. But sometimes the attraction between two people is so powerful it breaks through even the most entrenched color lines. And the consequences can be explosive."
--Number #4 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
Show less
eBook - 2017
"After witnessing her friend's death at the hands of a police officer, Starr Carter's life is complicated when the police and a local drug lord try t...Show more
"After witnessing her friend's death at the hands of a police officer, Starr Carter's life is complicated when the police and a local drug lord try to intimidate her in an effort to learn what happened the night Kahlil died"
--Number #5 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
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"After witnessing her friend's death at the hands of a police officer, Starr Carter's life is complicated when the police and a local drug lord try t...Show more
"After witnessing her friend's death at the hands of a police officer, Starr Carter's life is complicated when the police and a local drug lord try to intimidate her in an effort to learn what happened the night Kahlil died"
--Number #5 on ALA's most banned books of 2021
Show less
Picture Book - 2018
"Meet Marlon Bundo, a lonely bunny who lives with his Grampa, Mike Pence - the Vice President of the United States. But on this Very Special Day, Mar...Show more
"Meet Marlon Bundo, a lonely bunny who lives with his Grampa, Mike Pence - the Vice President of the United States. But on this Very Special Day, Marlon's life is about to change forever... With its message of tolerance and advocacy, this charming children's book explores issues of same-sex marriage and democracy. Sweet, funny, and beautifully illustrated, this book is dedicated to every bunny who has ever felt different"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content and for liberal politics
Show less
"Meet Marlon Bundo, a lonely bunny who lives with his Grampa, Mike Pence - the Vice President of the United States. But on this Very Special Day, Mar...Show more
"Meet Marlon Bundo, a lonely bunny who lives with his Grampa, Mike Pence - the Vice President of the United States. But on this Very Special Day, Marlon's life is about to change forever... With its message of tolerance and advocacy, this charming children's book explores issues of same-sex marriage and democracy. Sweet, funny, and beautifully illustrated, this book is dedicated to every bunny who has ever felt different"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content and for liberal politics
Show less
eBook - 2014
"Presents the story of a transgender child who traces her early awareness that she is a girl in spite of male anatomy and the acceptance she finds th...Show more
"Presents the story of a transgender child who traces her early awareness that she is a girl in spite of male anatomy and the acceptance she finds through a wise doctor who explains her natural transgender status"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
Show less
"Presents the story of a transgender child who traces her early awareness that she is a girl in spite of male anatomy and the acceptance she finds th...Show more
"Presents the story of a transgender child who traces her early awareness that she is a girl in spite of male anatomy and the acceptance she finds through a wise doctor who explains her natural transgender status"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
Show less
Picture Book - 1980
"A fearsome dragon leaves Elizabeth only a paper bag to clothe herself. But unswayed, she will chase after the dragon and get back what is hers. What...Show more
"A fearsome dragon leaves Elizabeth only a paper bag to clothe herself. But unswayed, she will chase after the dragon and get back what is hers. What about the Prince?"
--Banned for being "anti-family" because the princess isn't interested in marrying the prince
Show less
"A fearsome dragon leaves Elizabeth only a paper bag to clothe herself. But unswayed, she will chase after the dragon and get back what is hers. What...Show more
"A fearsome dragon leaves Elizabeth only a paper bag to clothe herself. But unswayed, she will chase after the dragon and get back what is hers. What about the Prince?"
--Banned for being "anti-family" because the princess isn't interested in marrying the prince
Show less
Picture Book - 2015
"At New York City's Central Park Zoo, two male penguins fall in love and start a family by taking turns sitting on an abandoned egg until it hatches"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
"At New York City's Central Park Zoo, two male penguins fall in love and start a family by taking turns sitting on an abandoned egg until it hatches"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
Show less
"At New York City's Central Park Zoo, two male penguins fall in love and start a family by taking turns sitting on an abandoned egg until it hatches"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
"At New York City's Central Park Zoo, two male penguins fall in love and start a family by taking turns sitting on an abandoned egg until it hatches"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
Show less
Graphic Novel - 2012
"Callie rides an emotional roller coaster while serving on the stage crew for a middle school production of Moon over Mississippi as various relation...Show more
"Callie rides an emotional roller coaster while serving on the stage crew for a middle school production of Moon over Mississippi as various relationships start and end, and others never quite get going"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content and going against "family values/morals"
Show less
"Callie rides an emotional roller coaster while serving on the stage crew for a middle school production of Moon over Mississippi as various relation...Show more
"Callie rides an emotional roller coaster while serving on the stage crew for a middle school production of Moon over Mississippi as various relationships start and end, and others never quite get going"
--Challenged for LGBTQ+ content and going against "family values/morals"
Show less
by Craft, Jerry
Graphic Novel - 2019
"Seventh grader Jordan Banks loves nothing more than drawing cartoons about his life. But instead of sending him to the art school of his dreams, his...Show more
"Seventh grader Jordan Banks loves nothing more than drawing cartoons about his life. But instead of sending him to the art school of his dreams, his parents enroll him in a prestigious private school known for its academics, where Jordan is one of the few kids of color in his entire grade. As he makes the daily trip from his Washington Heights apartment to the upscale Riverdale Academy Day School, Jordan soon finds himself torn between two worlds--and not really fitting into either one. Can Jordan learn to navigate his new school culture while keeping his neighborhood friends and staying true to himself?"
--Challenged for teaching "critical race theory"
Show less
"Seventh grader Jordan Banks loves nothing more than drawing cartoons about his life. But instead of sending him to the art school of his dreams, his...Show more
"Seventh grader Jordan Banks loves nothing more than drawing cartoons about his life. But instead of sending him to the art school of his dreams, his parents enroll him in a prestigious private school known for its academics, where Jordan is one of the few kids of color in his entire grade. As he makes the daily trip from his Washington Heights apartment to the upscale Riverdale Academy Day School, Jordan soon finds himself torn between two worlds--and not really fitting into either one. Can Jordan learn to navigate his new school culture while keeping his neighborhood friends and staying true to himself?"
--Challenged for teaching "critical race theory"
Show less
by Yang, Kelly
Book - 2018
"Mia Tang has a lot of secrets. Number 1: She lives in a motel, not a big house. Every day, while her immigrant parents clean the rooms, ten-year-old...Show more
"Mia Tang has a lot of secrets. Number 1: She lives in a motel, not a big house. Every day, while her immigrant parents clean the rooms, ten-year-old Mia manages the front desk of the Calivista Motel and tends to its guests. Number 2: Her parents hide immigrants. And if the mean motel owner, Mr. Yao, finds out they've been letting them stay in the empty rooms for free, the Tangs will be doomed. Number 3: She wants to be a writer. But how can she when her mom thinks she should stick to math because English is not her first language? It will take all of Mia's courage, kindness, and hard work to get through this year. Will she be able to hold on to her job, help the immigrants and guests, escape Mr. Yao, and go for her dreams?"
--Challenged for teaching "critical race theory"
Show less
"Mia Tang has a lot of secrets. Number 1: She lives in a motel, not a big house. Every day, while her immigrant parents clean the rooms, ten-year-old...Show more
"Mia Tang has a lot of secrets. Number 1: She lives in a motel, not a big house. Every day, while her immigrant parents clean the rooms, ten-year-old Mia manages the front desk of the Calivista Motel and tends to its guests. Number 2: Her parents hide immigrants. And if the mean motel owner, Mr. Yao, finds out they've been letting them stay in the empty rooms for free, the Tangs will be doomed. Number 3: She wants to be a writer. But how can she when her mom thinks she should stick to math because English is not her first language? It will take all of Mia's courage, kindness, and hard work to get through this year. Will she be able to hold on to her job, help the immigrants and guests, escape Mr. Yao, and go for her dreams?"
--Challenged for teaching "critical race theory"
Show less
by Blume, Judy
eBook - 2012
"Faced with the difficulties of growing up and choosing a religion, a twelve-year-old girl talks over her problems with her own private God"
--Challenged for being "amoral"
"Faced with the difficulties of growing up and choosing a religion, a twelve-year-old girl talks over her problems with her own private God"
--Challenged for being "amoral"
Show less
"Faced with the difficulties of growing up and choosing a religion, a twelve-year-old girl talks over her problems with her own private God"
--Challenged for being "amoral"
"Faced with the difficulties of growing up and choosing a religion, a twelve-year-old girl talks over her problems with her own private God"
--Challenged for being "amoral"
Show less
by Sass, A. J.
eBook - 2020
"Twelve-year-old figure skater Ana strives to win her competitions while learning about gender identity--Ana's own and that of a new friend--and how to navigate the best path forward"
-Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
"Twelve-year-old figure skater Ana strives to win her competitions while learning about gender identity--Ana's own and that of a new friend--and how to navigate the best path forward"
-Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
Show less
"Twelve-year-old figure skater Ana strives to win her competitions while learning about gender identity--Ana's own and that of a new friend--and how to navigate the best path forward"
-Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
"Twelve-year-old figure skater Ana strives to win her competitions while learning about gender identity--Ana's own and that of a new friend--and how to navigate the best path forward"
-Challenged for LGBTQ+ content
Show less
by Frank, Anne
Book - 1997
"In 1942, with the Nazis occupying Holland, a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the...Show more
"In 1942, with the Nazis occupying Holland, a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the next two years, until their whereabouts were betrayed to the Gestapo, the Franks and another family lived cloistered in the “Secret Annexe” of an old office building. Cut off from the outside world, they faced hunger, boredom, the constant cruelties of living in confined quarters, and the ever-present threat of discovery and death. In her diary Anne Frank recorded vivid impressions of her experiences during this period. By turns thoughtful, moving, and surprisingly humorous, her account offers a fascinating commentary on human courage and frailty and a compelling self-portrait of a sensitive and spirited young woman whose promise was tragically cut short."
--Challenged for being "sexually explicit" when Anne talks about curiosity about her own body
Show less
"In 1942, with the Nazis occupying Holland, a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the...Show more
"In 1942, with the Nazis occupying Holland, a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the next two years, until their whereabouts were betrayed to the Gestapo, the Franks and another family lived cloistered in the “Secret Annexe” of an old office building. Cut off from the outside world, they faced hunger, boredom, the constant cruelties of living in confined quarters, and the ever-present threat of discovery and death. In her diary Anne Frank recorded vivid impressions of her experiences during this period. By turns thoughtful, moving, and surprisingly humorous, her account offers a fascinating commentary on human courage and frailty and a compelling self-portrait of a sensitive and spirited young woman whose promise was tragically cut short."
--Challenged for being "sexually explicit" when Anne talks about curiosity about her own body
Show less
by Green, John
Book - 2008
"One month before graduating from his Central Florida high school, Quentin "Q" Jacobsen basks in the predictable boringness of his life unt...Show more
"One month before graduating from his Central Florida high school, Quentin "Q" Jacobsen basks in the predictable boringness of his life until the beautiful and exciting Margo Roth Spiegelman, Q's neighbor and classmate, takes him on a midnight adventure and then mysteriously disappears"
--Challenged for language and sexual discussion
Show less
"One month before graduating from his Central Florida high school, Quentin "Q" Jacobsen basks in the predictable boringness of his life unt...Show more
"One month before graduating from his Central Florida high school, Quentin "Q" Jacobsen basks in the predictable boringness of his life until the beautiful and exciting Margo Roth Spiegelman, Q's neighbor and classmate, takes him on a midnight adventure and then mysteriously disappears"
--Challenged for language and sexual discussion
Show less
Book - 2019
"'Speak up for yourself--we want to know what you have to say.' From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this i...Show more
"'Speak up for yourself--we want to know what you have to say.' From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless, outcast, because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. As time passes, she becomes increasingly isolated and practically stops talking altogether. Only her art class offers any solace, and it is through her work on an art project that she is finally able to face what really happened at that terrible party. Her healing process has just begun when she has another violent encounter. But this time Melinda cannot stay silent."
--Challenged for discussion of rape
Show less
"'Speak up for yourself--we want to know what you have to say.' From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this i...Show more
"'Speak up for yourself--we want to know what you have to say.' From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless, outcast, because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. As time passes, she becomes increasingly isolated and practically stops talking altogether. Only her art class offers any solace, and it is through her work on an art project that she is finally able to face what really happened at that terrible party. Her healing process has just begun when she has another violent encounter. But this time Melinda cannot stay silent."
--Challenged for discussion of rape
Show less
A Novel
Book - 2012
"Seventeen-year-old Greg has managed to become part of every social group at his Pittsburgh high school without having any friends, but his life chan...Show more
"Seventeen-year-old Greg has managed to become part of every social group at his Pittsburgh high school without having any friends, but his life changes when his mother forces him to befriend Rachel, a girl he once knew in Hebrew school who has leukemia"
--Challenged for language and sexual content
Show less
"Seventeen-year-old Greg has managed to become part of every social group at his Pittsburgh high school without having any friends, but his life chan...Show more
"Seventeen-year-old Greg has managed to become part of every social group at his Pittsburgh high school without having any friends, but his life changes when his mother forces him to befriend Rachel, a girl he once knew in Hebrew school who has leukemia"
--Challenged for language and sexual content
Show less
A Survivor's Tale : My Father Bleeds History
Book - 1986
"The author-illustrator traces his father's imprisonment in a Nazi concentration camp through a series of disarming and unusual cartoons arranged to ...Show more
"The author-illustrator traces his father's imprisonment in a Nazi concentration camp through a series of disarming and unusual cartoons arranged to tell the story as a novel"
--Challenged for its explicit depiction of the violence in the Holocaust, and for Nudity
Show less
"The author-illustrator traces his father's imprisonment in a Nazi concentration camp through a series of disarming and unusual cartoons arranged to ...Show more
"The author-illustrator traces his father's imprisonment in a Nazi concentration camp through a series of disarming and unusual cartoons arranged to tell the story as a novel"
--Challenged for its explicit depiction of the violence in the Holocaust, and for Nudity
Show less
Book - 2003
"An intelligent and outspoken only child, Satrapi--the daughter of radical Marxists and the great-granddaughter of Iran's last emperor--bears witness...Show more
"An intelligent and outspoken only child, Satrapi--the daughter of radical Marxists and the great-granddaughter of Iran's last emperor--bears witness to a childhood uniquely entwined with the history of her country. Originally published to wide critical acclaim in France, where it elicited comparisons to Art Spiegelman's Maus, Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi's wise, funny, and heartbreaking memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. In powerful black-and-white comic strip images, Satrapi tells the story of her life in Tehran from ages six to fourteen, years that saw the overthrow of the Shah's regime, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution, and the devastating effects of war with Iraq."
--Challenged for "inappropriate language and images"
Show less
"An intelligent and outspoken only child, Satrapi--the daughter of radical Marxists and the great-granddaughter of Iran's last emperor--bears witness...Show more
"An intelligent and outspoken only child, Satrapi--the daughter of radical Marxists and the great-granddaughter of Iran's last emperor--bears witness to a childhood uniquely entwined with the history of her country. Originally published to wide critical acclaim in France, where it elicited comparisons to Art Spiegelman's Maus, Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi's wise, funny, and heartbreaking memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. In powerful black-and-white comic strip images, Satrapi tells the story of her life in Tehran from ages six to fourteen, years that saw the overthrow of the Shah's regime, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution, and the devastating effects of war with Iraq."
--Challenged for "inappropriate language and images"
Show less