If you’ve somehow missed the news, tomorrow (September 22!) marks the official start of Banned Books Week here in the United States. If you’ve been following the Tome Gnome (either here or on social media) for any period of time, then you know that we support the freedom to read and stand against book censorship and banning. You can read more about why we feel this way, how we’ve supported Banned Books Week in prior years, and why more people need to take a stand year-round to combat these evolving attacks on books and authors – especially those authors who identify as nonwhite and LGBTGIAP+.

To start, we want to share the story of how we recognized Banned Books Week last year (2023), and what happened. We didn’t share much then, but it’s a story worth telling now. To encourage folks to get out and read banned/censored books, last year we spoke with Elvia Verdugo from #ThisIsTucson about our stance against book banning and censorship and how folks can support the freedom to read here in Tucson. The piece was published and included some great suggestions for supporting banned and censored books in our community. We all felt really good about it! But then the trolls came. Elvia and our friends at #ThisIsTucson got A LOT of hate on their Facebook page and the post promoting the piece. So, if you don’t think book banning – and the people who support banning/challenging books – is an issue in our community, you would be wrong. If nothing else, what happened last year was a reminder that what we do (sharing diverse books) – and taking a stand in support of the freedom to read – is extremely important.

If you want to support Banned Books Week, please consider joining Unite Against Book Bans and the Book Sanctuary movement. We are members of both, and they provide amazing advocacy resources.

Here are some quotes from last year’s article for #ThisIsTucson – we still stand by these sentiments!

“Banned Books Week and Unite Against Book Bans go “hand in hand with our mission of wanting people to read about stories from people whom maybe they don’t relate with already, to gain empathy and just awareness and understanding of different cultures and people and lifestyles,” said the Tucson Tome Gnome’s Mary Ellen Flynn.”

“Our core freedom to engage in ideas, literature and discourse is under attack in various parts of the country,” Walsh said. “And I think that’s really problematic. It’s not to say everyone needs to agree with every idea or perspective, but everyone should have the freedom to access and read about those things and make determinations themselves and engage in dialogue. I think we shortchange ourselves when we cut off the conversations from even happening.”

Curious to know what books are being targeted by challenges and censorship? The American Library Association maintains some of the best nationwide statistics on book banning and censorship attempts in libraries. Check out the list below to see the top challenged books in 2023 (sadly, many of these have been on this list for a few years…):

So, how is the Tome Gnome recognizing Banned Books Week this year? Well, we are leaning into our role as a Book Sanctuary: we have bought 7 of the most banned books, and every day during banned books week (starting tomorrow) we will be sharing them in Little Free Libraries through our community. If you want to see our progress, follow us on Instagram to see which libraries we place the books in! Every time we share posts about Banned Books, we end up losing some followers, and it’s likely the trolls will come (again), but we are committed to being the louder voice – a voice of support for LGBTQIA+ and nonwhite authors and the freedom to read.

So this week (and all the weeks, honestly), please don’t forget to visit your library’s banned books display or buy some banned books from your favorite local indie book store ❤ 📚

PS: If you haven’t heard about it yet, we recently launched our fundraising campaign for next year’s (2025) programs and book-hiding adventures. So if you’re feeling generous and want to continue to see the Tome Gnome support and advocate on issues like the fight against book censorship (and share some banned and challenged books with our community!), please consider donating! We are so grateful for all your support. THANK YOU!

DONATE NOW TO HELP THE TOME GNOME SHARE CHALLENGED AND CENSORED BOOKS WITH OUR COMMUNITY!