Yes, Lily and Dunkin Is Banned!
📖 Why You Should Read This Book
Gephart handles both gender identity and mental illness with compassion and accuracy. It's a middle-grade novel that trusts young readers to understand complex experiences.
Donna Gephart’s Lily and Dunkin alternates between two eighth-graders in South Florida. Lily (born Tim) is a transgender girl who hasn’t yet come out at school and dreads the onset of puberty that will push her body further from who she knows herself to be. Dunkin (born Norbert) is the new kid, a basketball player hiding his bipolar disorder and the medication he’s embarrassed to take. Their friendship develops carefully, with each chapter offering a different perspective. Gephart, who spent years researching with trans youth and mental health professionals, gets the details right. The book is compassionate without being preachy, and it trusts its middle-grade audience to handle difficult material.
Lily and Dunkin has been challenged 7 times across Florida, South Carolina, Kansas, Pennsylvania, and Texas, objected to for LGBTQ+ themes. The challenges came during the 2021-2022 wave of mass removals targeting any book that includes transgender characters, regardless of age-appropriateness. This is a middle-grade novel recommended for ages 10 and up. There’s no sexual content. The “controversy” is that a trans kid exists in its pages and is treated with dignity. Gephart has said she wrote the book for the trans kids who had no mirror in their school library. Removing it from those shelves is a deliberate act of erasure.
Why Was It Banned?
Where Was It Banned?
Read It Anyway
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Lily and Dunkin banned?
Yes, Lily and Dunkin by Donna Gephart has been banned or challenged in 7 documented instances across 5 states in the United States, including Florida, South Carolina, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Texas. It remains one of the most frequently challenged books in America.
Why was Lily and Dunkin banned?
Lily and Dunkin has been challenged and banned for the following reasons: LGBTQ+ Themes. These challenges have come from school boards, libraries, and parent groups seeking to restrict access to the book.
Where is Lily and Dunkin banned?
As of 2025, Lily and Dunkin has been banned or challenged in Florida, South Carolina, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Texas. Notable bans include School District of Manatee County (2022), The School District of Palm Beach County (2022), Horry County Schools (2022).