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Young Adult literature is a battleground for the censorship debate in the United States. These books, from modern classics to formative works of the genre, have been at the center of it all since their publication.
Does a book like The Perks of Being a Wallflowerbelong in the YA or adult section? Is Are You There God? It's Me Margaretinappropriate for readers of a certain age group? Those are ongoing debates that are happening in school districts, libraries, and town halls all over the country. The novels below each push the boundaries of Young Adult fiction in their own ways, and as such, have become targets of some people's censorial instincts.
Looking at why and how these books get under people's skin, and why that has made them the most oft-challenged texts in YA history, can teach readers something about the role of the genre for readers and the state of book banning in modern America.
The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part-Time Indian
Written By Sherman Alexie; Published In 2007
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is up there in the rankings of the most contested Young Adult novel of the 21st century. The Absolutely True Diary ranked #1 on the American Library Association's "most challenged" list from 2010-2019, and it should be expected to be a lock for the top 10 for the current decade.
Like most of the books listened here, and most of the great works of the YA genre, Alexie's novel is a coming-of-age story, and the author doesn't glamorize or sanitize the experience. Especially when writing about life Spokane Indian Reservation, and the complexities of growing up as an indigenous person in modern America. As such, The Absolutely True Diary has been a source of controversy for its use of profanity, its depiction of substance abuse, and its sexual references, but also its politics.
Complicating things further, sexual harassment allegations against the author have tainted the book's legacy, as it approaches its 20th anniversary. This has led to its own challenges to The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, sealing its fate among the all-time top banned and challenged YA books ever.
Looking For Alaska
Written By John Green; Published In 2005
Looking for Alaska is another chart-topper. It was fourth overall on the ALA's "Most Challenged From 2010-2019" list, and as far as individual years goes, it ranked #1 in 2015, a full decade after its publication. Over ten years beyond that, Looking for Alaska is still commonly challenged for its depictions of teen sexuality, alcohol use, and death.
The biggest reason people have tried to ban Looking for Alaska from school curriculums and YA sections of libraries is a sexual encounter between two main characters. Though it encompasses just a few pages, this has been the source of major controversy in school districts across the country. Detractors have also dinged the book for foul language, subversive humor, and casual depictions of teenagers smoking and drinking.
Without spoiling the book, or the subsequent TV adaptation, underage drinking plays a major role in the plot. Looking for Alaska's defenders have cited it as a PSA against drinking, but that hasn't soothed critics, who argue back that the book's adult themes and tone are the larger issue that should keep it off YA shelves.
The Perks Of Being A Wallflower
Written By Stephen Chbosky; Published In 1999
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is one of the greatest YA novels of the last 30 years, which also makes it one of the most routinely challenged. Content in Perks that has raised the ire of censors includes references to suicide and child sexual abuse, depictions of teen sexuality, and of course, drug and alcohol use by underage characters.
The book came out in 1999 and became a dominant presence on the ALA's "Most Challenged" list for the next quarter-century. Perks as 10th on the "Top 10 Most Challenged Books of the 2000s" list, before dropping four spots on the 2010s iteration of the list, perhaps because of the popularity of the 2012 film adaptation. Still, it continues to be frequently challenged to this day; just last year, Utah instituted a statewide ban of the novel in all its public schools.
It's easy to see a theme developing here: the books that offer the most unflinching account of teenage existence are the ones people want to keep young adults from reading. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is among the most significant modern examples.
The Chocolate War
Written by Robert Cormier; Published In 1974
The Chocolate War has faded in reputation over the past 20 years, but in the 1990s and 2000s, it ranked among the most challenged books in the U.S.; it was #4 on the ALA's '90s Top 10, and #3 overall in the aughts, including ascending to the #1 spot in 2004. That is, 30 years after its original publication.
Robert Cormier's novel came out during a boom period in Young Adult fiction, when the genre was metastasizing into its modern form, with books aimed a young audiences becoming more serious, and in the process, more controversial. However, its heyday as a commonly challenged text came decades later; perhaps because the novel stuck with its first generation of readers, many of whom turned around and refused to let their own children read it.
Critics cite the usual suspects when challenging The Chocolate War: sexuality, language, subversiveness, and what they consider to be a lack a suitability for its intended age group. Supporters of the novel, meanwhile, consider it a tentpole of the YA genre, a masterpiece that is becoming less acknowledged for its greatness over time.
Go Ask Alice
Written By Beatrice Sparks (As Anonymous); Published In 1971
Go Ask Alice is, admittedly, about as bleak as Young Adult fiction gets. Upon its original early '70s publication, the novel was touted as the "real" diary of a teenage runaway and drug addict; that's not the case, but its brutal realism and tragic content made it convincing enough at the time. 55 years later, it is still one of the most recognizable titles in the YA canon, and also the most controversial.
Alice is clearly designed to convey an anti-drug message, but nevertheless, its detailed depiction of hardcore drug use and its consequences has made it a perennial target for censorship. Along with the novel's use of sex and sexual assault as plot points. Go Ask Alice doesn't glorify sex, drugs, or any of its content, but it does openly deal with them, which is enough for challengers of the book's placement in libraries and its use in school settings.
Go Ask Alice is among the most challenged books of the last 50 years. It is impossible to have a conversation about modern YA literature, or modern literary censorship, without Alice being involved.
Are You There God? It's Me Margaret
Written By Judy Blume; Published In 1970
Are You There God? It's Me Margaret is a transformative work of Young Adult literature. The title is immediately recognizable, even to those who haven't read the book. It has been referenced and parodied countless times over the past 56 years. And the book was groundbreaking for its time, which also led to it being challenged often by censors.
Critics have opposed author Judy Blume's book for its detailed depiction of a young girl going through puberty, as well as for the "crisis of faith" its protagonist goes through in the novel. Are You There God? is a very real question for Margaret in the book, as she physically and intellectually matures over the course of the story.
Blume's book has steadily descended the ranks of the ALA's "most challenged" over the years, but it still has the capacity to spark controversy from time to time. Overall, it has had an outsized impact on the Young Adult genre, and with that comes frequent challenges, none of which have lessened its place in American literary culture.
