Middle grade books are among the targets of book bans and challenges, particularly in classrooms and school libraries. Often, parents are concerned with their children engaging with topics of race, sexual orientation, and gender identity, but there are many more reasons why a book may be removed from shelves. These bans make it difficult for young readers to connect with diversity and inclusion through literature, and more. In today's article, we share a list of ten banned or challenged books for middle grade readers and where you can find them.
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10 Banned Books for Middle Grade Readers
- Drama (Raina Tegemeier): About a middle school production of Moon Over Mississippi, this book for ages 7-12 has been banned for LGBTQ2IA+ content. Read this book on Comic Online or visit GoRaina to learn more about the book, the author, and where you can buy Drama.
- Olive's Ocean (Kevin Henkes): About the aftermath following a deadly car accident, this book is meant to help tweens learn to process grief and discuss loss. It has been banned for its discussions of death and mentions of sex. Borrow this book from OpenLibrary or buy it from The Best Children's Books.
- Prince & Knight (Daniel Haack): A children's romance about a prince and a knight who fall in love, this book has been challenged for including gay characters and queer themes. It is written for ages 4-8. Borrow it through Epic or visit Daniel Haack's website to learn more about the book and where you can buy it.
- Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry (Mildred D. Taylor): Depicting Depression Era discrimination against Black Americans, this book has been banned for its realistic depictions of racism. It is written for ages 11 and up. Borrow this book from OpenLibrary or buy it on Amazon.
- Something Happened in Our Town: A Child's Story about Racial Injustice (Jessica Herthel): About a pair of friends (one Black and one White) who deal with the aftermath of a police shooting of a Black man in their hometown, this book includes resources for discussing traumatic experiences like this with children. It is written for ages 4-8. Read this book on Epic or buy it from Barnes and Noble.
- Sex is a Funny Word: A Book About Bodies, Feelings and YOU! (Cory Silverberg): A children's resource book about bodies, gender and sexuality, this book is meant to be used as a teaching aid for ages 8-10. It has been challenged and banned for the inclusion of LGBTQ2IA+ content and the discussion of bodies and attraction. Borrow this book from OpenLibrary or buy it from Penguin Random House.
- The Adventures of Captain Underpants (Dave Pilkey): About a pair of students who hypnotize their school principal into believing he is a superhero, this book has been banned for the inclusion of same-sex couples and unruly characters who might encourage disruptive behavior among readers. It is for readers aged 7-11. Borrow this book from the InternetArchive or visit Dave Pilkey's website to learn more about the book series and where to buy it.
- The Amulet of Samarkand (Jonathan Stroud): The first book in a fantasy series follows a young magician's apprentice. It has been banned or challenged for including themes of magic and witchcraft and is written for grades 5-8. Borrow this book from OpenLibrary or visit Jonathan Stroud's website to learn more about the book series and where to buy it.
- The Watsons go to Birmingham (Christopher Paul Curtis): About a Black family traveling south to visit their family in Alabama, this book has been challenged for violence and language. It is written for ages 11 and up. Borrow this book from OpenLibrary or buy it from Scholastic.
- White Bird (R.J. Palacio): Based on the experiences of the author's grandmother growing up in Nazi-occupied France, this book was challenged because it painted Nazis in a negative light. Use the WorldCat database to find it at a library near you or buy it from KD's Books.
Sources
- The Adventures of Captain underpants : Free download, borrow, and streaming. Internet Archive. (n.d.). https://archive.org/details/the-adventures-of-captain-underpants
- The amulet of samarkand. (n.d.). http://www.jonathanstroud.com/bart_amulet.html
- Books. Daniel Haack. (n.d.). https://www.danielhaack.com/books
- Captain underpants. Dav Pilkey. (n.d.). https://pilkey.com/series/captain-underpants
- Celano, M. (n.d.). Something happened in our town: A child’s story about racial injustice. Read Something Happened In Our Town: A Child’s Story
- About Racial Injustice on Epic. https://www.getepic.com/book/80806365/something-happened-in-our-town-a-childs-story-about-racial-injustice
- Curtis, C. P. (1998, January 1). The Watsons go to Birmingham--1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis. Open Library.
- https://openlibrary.org/works/OL115601W/The_Watsons_go_to_Birmingham--1963?edition=key%3A%2Fbooks%2FOL28199702M
- Drama comic. Read Comics Online for Free. (n.d.). https://comiconlinefree.net/comic/drama
- Drama. GoRaina! (n.d.). https://goraina.com/drama
- Editors, S. (2019, October 30). The ultimate list of banned books. Scholastic. https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/teaching-tools/book-lists/popular/the-ultimate-list-of-banned-books.html
- Haack, D. (n.d.). Prince & Knight. Read Prince & Knight on Epic. https://www.getepic.com/book/82400650/prince-knight
- Henkes, K. (1970, January 1). Olive’s ocean by Kevin Henkes. Open Library. https://openlibrary.org/works/OL469239W/Olive%27s_ocean?edition=key%3A%2Fbooks%2FOL37085879M
- Nikki, & Name. (2022, February 19). 13 most challenged & banned books in Middle Schools in 2022. Middle Grade Reads. https://middlegradereads.com/challenged-banned-books-middle-school/
- Olive’s ocean. the best childrens books.org. (n.d.). https://store.the-best-childrens-books.org/products/olives-ocean
- Palacio, R. J. (n.d.). White Bird: A wonder story (a graphic novel). KD’s Books. https://kdsbooksls.com/book/9780593487785
- PhD, M. C. (2018, April 4). Something happened in our town: A child’s story about racial injustice: Hardcover. Barnes & Noble. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/something-happened-in-our-town-marianne-celano-phd/1127888005
- Shhhh! these kid’s books have been banned (or challenged). Evanston Public Library. (2021, September 24). https://www.epl.org/booklist/shhhh-these-kids-books-have-been-banned-or-challenged/
- Silverberg, C. (1970, January 1). Sex is a funny word by Cory Silverberg. Open Library. https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20006843W/Sex_is_a_funny_word?edition=key%3A%2Fbooks%2FOL27186931M
- Silverberg, C. (n.d.). Sex is a funny word by Cory Silverberg: 9781609806064: Penguinrandomhouse.com: Books. PenguinRandomhouse.com. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/246231/sex-is-a-funny-word-by-cory-silverberg-illustrated-by-fiona-smyth/
- Stroud, J. (1970, January 1). Amulet of samarkand by Jonathan Stroud. Open Library. https://openlibrary.org/works/OL27413707W/Amulet_of_Samarkand_Graphic_Novel?edition=key%3A%2Fbooks%2FOL28438679M
- Taylor, M. D. (2018). Roll of thunder, hear my cry. Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Roll-Thunder-Hear-My-Cry/dp/0142401129
- Taylor, M. D., & Taylor, M. (1976, January 1). Roll of thunder, hear my cry by Mildred D. Taylor. Open Library. https://openlibrary.org/works/OL40867W/Roll_of_thunder_hear_my_cry?edition=key%3A%2Fbooks%2FOL37060252M
- The Watsons Go to Birmingham. Scholastic. (n.d.). https://shop.scholastic.com/teachers-ecommerce/teacher/books/the-watsons-go-to-birmingham-1963-9780590690140.html
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