Two days after the election, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale saw a 6,866% surge in sales, according to Amazon figures. As reported in an article from CNN Business, Amazon figures showed the book skyrocketed from 209th place on the list of Amazon’s bestselling books to 3rd place. In second place is Melania, Melania Trump’s new memoir.
The Handmaid’s Tale is a dystopian novel set in a theocratic, male-dominated future in America where the constitution is suspended and certain women are forced to bear children for upper-class families. After Trump’s win on November 5th, women’s reproductive rights have become an increased topic of discussion. Worry and fear is highlighted heartbreakingly in Atwood’s book as women’s autonomy is stripped from them and their country turns upside down, forcing them into sexual slavery.
The American Library Association compiles a list of the most banned books in the country every year, reporting from libraries, schools, and the media. The list from 2023 included Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe, All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson, This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, and Let’s Talk About It: The Teen’s Guide to Sex, Relationships and Being a Human by Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan. All of these books encounter themes of sexuality and discrimination, two topics that are consistently challenged in the United States.
PEN America reported that out of the 1,477 instances of book bans from July toDecember of 2022, 44% of books included cases of violence or physical abuse, 38% covered topics on health and well-being for students, 30% included characters of color/discuss race and racism, 26% have LGBTQ+ characters or themes, 24% depict sexual experiences between characters, and 17% of these books mention teen pregnancy, abortion, or sexual assault. Based on the most banned titles above, these numbers have only increased.
Here are a few books from ALA’s list of Top 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books between 1990 and 2019 that I feel everyone should read. These are titles I picked out, knowing that either I or my peers have enjoyed reading them. After reading these narratives firsthand, would you deem them bannable? I find that reading is the best way for people to understand the world around them and connect. After all, knowledge is power. Perhaps this power of literature is what certain people wish to eradicate.
- The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
- The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
- The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
- Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
- Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
- The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel
- Beloved by Toni Morrison
- The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
- The Color Purple by Alice Walker
- Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
- Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
- 1984 by George Orwell
- A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
- Awakening by Kate Chopin
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
- Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
Hit up your local bookstore or library and grab one of these challenging, controversial reads off the shelves. Decide for yourself! And if you’re spiraling about the current state of the world, like I am here, here’s my favorite quote from one of these widely challenged books that I can’t imagine why someone would want to ban:
“In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.”
— Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank