The Number That Should Stop You Cold
PEN America has documented nearly 23,000 book bans in U.S. public schools since 2021. In the 2024-2025 school year alone, 6,870 instances hit nearly 4,000 unique titles.
This is not a few angry parents pulling a novel off a shelf. The American Library Association tracked 4,235 unique titles challenged in 2025, the second-highest number ever recorded. Of those, 5,668 were outright banned from library access.
Who is doing this? Not parents. In 2025, 92% of all book challenges came from pressure groups, government officials, and institutional decision makers. Less than 3% came from individual parents.
Where It Is Worst
Five states account for the largest share of bans. Florida leads by a wide margin, with more than 2,300 new bans added in just one year.
| State | District-Level Book Bans |
|---|---|
| Florida | 8,837 |
| Iowa | 3,798 |
| Texas | 3,745 |
| Tennessee | 2,016 |
| Pennsylvania | 737 |
Source: PEN America Book Ban Index, Banned Books by State
What Gets Banned
The ALA’s 2025 Most Challenged Books list reveals which titles pressure groups target most. The list skews toward young adult fiction that deals with identity, violence, and sexuality.
| Rank | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sold | Patricia McCormick |
| 2 | The Perks of Being a Wallflower | Stephen Chbosky |
| 3 | Gender Queer: A Memoir | Maia Kobabe |
| 4 | Empire of Storms | Sarah J. Maas |
| 5 | Last Night at the Telegraph Club | Malinda Lo |
| 5 | Tricks | Ellen Hopkins |
| 7 | A Court of Thorns and Roses | Sarah J. Maas |
| 8 | A Clockwork Orange | Anthony Burgess |
| 8 | Identical | Ellen Hopkins |
| 8 | Looking for Alaska | John Green |
| 8 | Storm and Fury | Jennifer L. Armentrout |
PEN America’s separate analysis found that 44% of censored books feature BIPOC characters and 39% include LGBTQ+ themes. Nonfiction now accounts for 29%, more than double the previous year.
“Of the unique titles challenged in 2025, 1,671 represent the lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ people and people of color.” American Library Association, April 2026
The Nonfiction Problem
The PEN America report Facts & Fiction found that nonfiction is increasingly under fire. History books and memoirs now face the same removal campaigns once reserved for novels with explicit content. Banning nonfiction is not content moderation. It is erasing the historical record from school shelves.
What You Can Do
- Read your district’s book challenge policy. Every school district has one. NCAC’s resource center explains what to look for and how the process should work.
- Show up at school board meetings. Mention you are a constituent. Explain why these books matter to your community. Bring neighbors. PEN America’s action guide has talking points.
- Join Unite Against Book Bans. The action toolkit gives you petition templates, social media assets, and organizing checklists.
- Report censorship. File a report with the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom so bans get counted and tracked.
- Write your representatives. State legislators vote on the laws that enable mass book removals. Tell them to stop.
Book bans are an Education issue and a civil rights issue. The numbers keep climbing because organized pressure groups keep pushing while most people stay quiet. That is the part you can change.
Sources
- PEN America: School Book Bans Index for 2024-2025
- ALA: Book Ban Data and 2025 Challenged Books List
- World Population Review: Banned Books by State Rankings
- Publishing Perspectives: PEN America Report Finds Nonfiction Increasingly Targeted
- NCAC: Book Challenge Resource Center for Schools and Libraries
- Unite Against Book Bans: Action Toolkit for Organizing Against Censorship