Book Bans Etc.!

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📚 Most-borrowed books

Data: OverDrive/Libby. Chart: Sami Sparber/Axios "The Calamity Club" was last month's most-borrowed e-book on Libby, Axios' Sami Sparber reports. Author Kathryn Stockett's bestseller explores poverty and friendship through the eyes of two outcast women in 1930s Mississippi. 🍿 The big picture: Libby's top 20 features several "BookTok" favorites that have already been adapted for the screen, or are slated to be. That includes "Yesteryear" by Caro Claire Burke (a thriller about a tradwife influencer that Anne Hathaway is set to star in and produce) and "The Deal" by Elle Kennedy (the basis for Amazon Prime Video's hit hockey romance series "Off Campus.") Go deeper.

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Book Ban Boom

Public schools across the US implemented nearly 12,000 book bans over the past year, a new study revealed. The bans encompassed 7,370 individual works, marking the highest total since nonprofit organization PEN America began tracking bans in 2021.  More than a dozen states have enacted sweeping laws to censor and remove books flagged as explicit or profane since 2021. Books addressing race, sexuality, and gender identity remain among the most commonly removed materials, according to PEN’s analysis. See the most banned titles here. Texas and Florida’s combined tally accounted for around 95% of all recorded bans nationwide (scroll for map of bans by state). Supporters say parents have a right to control their children’s educational materials, while opponents contend that bans violate the First Amendment. Stephen King was the most-banned author for the second consecutive year. His newest novel, “Other Worlds Than These,” comes out today. Watch how he became the king of horror (via YouTube).