The number of books removed from stores, libraries, and reading lists because of their themes and ideas has skyrocketed in recent years. By means of April 2022for example, school districts in 26 states have banned more than 1,100 books or opened investigations… Five months later, the total number for the 2021-2022 school year was increased more than double That.
While some of these objections are objectively well-intentioned, many stem from parental rights groups of the same name supported by nationwide campaigns. According to Pen America, “…the vast majority of current book bans are not spontaneous, organic expressions of citizen concern. Rather, they reflect the work of a growing number of advocacy groups that have made demanding censorship of certain books and ideas in schools their mission.” Of the nearly 50 groups formed to object, nearly three quarters have been established after 2021. In addition to calls for nationwide bans, a large portion of these groups have used school board meetings, circulated lists, and even criminal complaints to make their point. Some librarians are even the recipients of targeted social media threat campaigns for simply providing these resources.
A major concern for emerging creators is that many of these books are not new, but were made in the last decade. Nearly half of these books are written with a YA audience in mind. Many of them deal with themes such as LGBTQ+ acceptance and race relations, both of which have been difficult to find in the media until recently.
With any luck, it will be the same audiences primed and ready to jump right into the new movie franchises that will undoubtedly arise from these books. In an era where intellectual property is rampant, these stories would fit right in on the big screen.
Genderqueer
Production studios love themselves a good graphic novel, and honestly, who can blame them? After all, the storyboard is practically done! Graphic novels like Persepolis have already laid the groundwork for acclaim in the custom non-superhero space, and Genderqueer by Maia Kobabe would be a wonderful addition. In fact, it’s a memoir, so it’s based on a true story.
So what’s the problem? The book, which started as a way for the author to explain non-binary and asexual terms to loved ones, has been banned and challenged for showing the same content. The American Library Association recently named it the top banned book of 2021 for its “sexually explicit” images. According to a letter sent to a Wisconsin school district, the book contains “misleading and ‘politically correct’ information about gender, sexual orientation, family life and other sensitive topics of discussion.”
Funnily enough, according to the author, the criticism actually stimulated sales.
Dear Martin
Dear Martin reads like a much needed update The outsiders– but instead of Ponyboy and The Greasers, we follow Justyce McAllister, a black teenager who attends a predominantly white high school on a scholarship. After being falsely arrested and released without charge (or, as the author writes, an apology), he tries to make sense of things by writing letters to the ghost of Martin Luther King, Jr. Soon after, he finds himself in a similar situation. , this time with more terrible results.
Author Nic Stone said she was inspired to write this debut novel for her sons after a series of racially charged events. It is the subject of the same events that led to the censorship of this book. Several school districts in Georgia, where the book is based, have banned it from schools, citing it as displaying “racial tendencies as a negative feature of society”.
With movies like the book-turned-movie The hate you give in the not-so-distant past, it’s only a matter of time before this novel gets the same treatment.
A court of fog and fury
Speaking of which, it’s only a matter of time before author Sarah J. Maas’ widely popular YA fiction comes out A court of fog and fury is adapted for the screen. This book, the second in the A court of thorns and roses series, is not only distinguished by its great content, but also by the role it has played in the modern history of the banishment of books. This tale of a mortal brought to faerie lands after killing a member of the fey was nearly banned from bookstores in Virginia along with co-nominee Genderqueer. A lawsuit filed to that effect by Virginia House of Delegates Representative Tim Anderson proved unsuccessful.
While for chronological purposes it’s probably smarter to start with the first of this series, it’s hard not to want to give dissenters the one-two punch by starting with book number two instead. The sprawling action, world-building, intricate politics and heart-wrenching romance of this series would be well suited for television series, particularly on networks like the CW and streaming platforms like Showtime. As of now, there is an option for the series for both film and TV, but nothing has progressed beyond the preparatory stages yet.
Lawn boy
Hollywood really likes a movie based on a true story, especially when it already has a strong character ready and waiting in the wings to star in it. Jonathan Evison’s semi-autobiographical memoir Lawn boy follows Mike Muñoz, a young Chicano living in Washington state who can’t seem to make it up the proverbial ladder.
Unfortunately, this title has had some of the most violent outrage on this list, despite its introspective humor. Three citizens filed police reports after a school board meeting in Texas and school board members in Virginia were threatened with physical violence and even death for their alleged support of the book. Those in favor of removing this novel from shelves say it contains pornographic, homoerotic material. In response, Evison said that the moment or moments in question “…involve a grown man who remembers a sexual encounter he had with another fourth grader when he was in fourth grade”. This book’s clever and whimsical take on reality would be tonally similar to The benefits of a wallflower are.
Knave of Hearts (and other parts)
Easily the classiest name of the bunch, Knave of Hearts (and other parts) follows an open and proud teenager, Jack Rothman. Like most kids his age, he is—surprise, surprise—sexually active. However, unlike most children, his sexual orientation makes him a big fish in a tiny pond. Since sex is a very big part of the teenage rumor mill, Jack decides to write an advice column on his friend’s blog to set things right, reclaiming his agency in the process. Unfortunately, this also earns him his own stalker.
Core complaints about the book stem from its open depiction of sex, specifically gay sex. Author Lev AC Rosen said the questions in the sex column came from sex education experts and, of course, from teens themselves. Rosen said in a statement on the book’s ban: “I knew it would be controversial, but I also knew it was necessary.”
In the right hands, this book could translate into a sharper, more LGBTQ+-friendly version of Netflix’s To all the boys I loved before.
We are the ants
Fans of YA sci-fi will be clamoring for a ticket to see this ethereal look at life and death on the big screen. In We are the ants, the protagonist is abducted by aliens shortly after learning that his friend committed suicide. He is given exactly 144 days and a button to press that would save the planet from eminent alien destruction. But is the world really worth saving?
A mix of fear-ridden drama and hard science fiction, this book was banned in Utah following the implementation of Utah law HB 374, “Sensitive Materials In Schools,” despite also being on Time’s list of “100 Best YA Books of All Time”. times” ended up. . While the basis of this book transcends genres, the main message serves as a basic mechanism and could lead to adaptations such as The giver.
Make no mistake: Ban books and other materials for public use is an act of censorship. Restricting content for everyone forces other potential users to never have the option to choose it for themselves. Even worse, people who see themselves in these stories that reflect and speak to them get the message that their way of life should not be acknowledged. Now it’s more important than ever to keep their insight in mind, both on the shelves and on screen.