About Is It Banned?
What is isitbanned.com?
Is It Banned? is a searchable database of books that have been banned or challenged in the United States. We track which books have been targeted, where they were banned, why they were challenged, and how many times.
Book banning in America has accelerated dramatically since 2021. Thousands of titles have been removed from school libraries and public collections across dozens of states. We believe in transparency: readers deserve to know which books are being suppressed and why.
Our Mission
We make it easy for anyone to search for a book and find out if it has been banned. Each book entry includes the reasons for its challenges, the locations where bans occurred, and links to purchase the book, because the best response to a book ban is reading the book.
Data Sources
Our data comes from trusted organizations tracking book censorship in America:
- American Library Association (ALA): The ALA has tracked challenged and banned books since 1990. Their Office for Intellectual Freedom compiles annual lists of the most challenged titles.
- PEN America: PEN America's Index of School Book Bans tracks every instance of a book being banned from a school library or classroom in the United States.
We cross-reference these sources and update our database regularly to provide the most accurate and comprehensive view of book banning in the US.
Why This Matters
The freedom to read is fundamental. When books are banned, ideas are suppressed. When certain stories are removed from shelves, entire communities lose the ability to see themselves reflected in literature.
We believe every reader has the right to choose what they read. Is It Banned? exists to shine a light on censorship and empower readers to make their own choices.