Banned Book

by Jonah Winter, Gary Kelley (Illustrator)

"The words were dangerous." For as long as people have been expressing their opinions in writing, there have been those in positions of power who have succeeded in censoring those thoughts. In this timely and provocative parable, a book is first subjected to redaction, then removal from a library. What becomes of a banned book? Is it really just landfill fodder in the end? Readers must decide for themselves.

Genres: Picture Books, Banned Books, Childrens, Activism

32 pages, Hardcover

Published August 8, 2023

About the author

Jonah Winter is the celebrated author of many picture book biographies, including Barack, which was a New York Times bestseller. His books include Here Comes the Garbage Barge, Sonia Sotomayor, Roberto Clemente, and more. A poet and a painter, Mr. Winter divides his time between Santa Fe and a small town in Pennsylvania.

Reviews

[‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾Carissa☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no words, everyone should read this

[Faye · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heartfelt plea against censorship and book banning, while also explaining what this means to young readers. I'm so glad this book was made, but also sad that it needed to be made. I will absolutely be adding this to my collection, because this is such an important topic.

[Brooke - TheBrookeList · Rating 4 out of 5]

Banned Book is satirical and witty (and almost beyond younger readers). The book is banned and censored throughout with angry black boxes, pointing to those fighting about what children can/can't read. The culmination of all the censoring is clever and through-provoking. Bold and mature style. Overall, not quite five stars for me because it's a little intense and may oversimplify a pretty complex issue.

Read as a nomination in the Fiction Picture Book book award category as a panelist for Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Awards (Cybils Awards).

For younger readers and a less-stark reality, my children have really enjoyed This Book is Banned by Raj Haldar (silly guy).

Ban This Book, by Alan Gratz, really struck a chord with my teen and pre-teen readers.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a picture book that tells the story of a book being banned. However, as the story is being told, words are being blacked out. This is a short book but there's a lot of serious stuff going on: a group called WAR (We are Right) is organizing the censorship; the school board doesn't listen to the librarian; and the book is removed from the school and ends up in the trash. A thoughtful book that should be included in units about censorship and the freedom to read.

"[This content is awaiting possible removeal. The word 'censorship' is problematic. 'Deselection' is the preferred term.]"

[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Effective, if a little heavy-handed. The book is filled with a sense of realness and urgency that may help readers to understand the book banning crisis in schools across the country.

[Eric Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I ordered this book over a year ago. Through a series of odd events, I finally got my copy a year, two months later, and a couple of weeks after Banned Book Week. But I got it and am very happy I did, even though the story is sad and makes me angry to even ponder the idea of banning books.

Banned Book is a picture book written by Jonah Winter and illustrated by Gary Kelly. It is a tragic tale about what happens to the books “they” ban. In the political climate we find ourselves in, as short and simple as this book is, its importance is at a level as Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 and Orwell’s 1984.

Censorship and book banning are hot topics. In the United States, we just had a V.P. debate where one candidate accused the other side of censorship. This candidate belongs to the party of censorship. His colleagues, each year, ban thousands of books for one reason or another. These same people argue how bad censorship is. Yet, these same people have no clue between a private business censoring and the government. They claim it’s to “protect the children”; in reality, they do it to control any and all content that is printed.

This is a book that everyone needs to read. If you disagree with the idea of Banning Books, let this story light a fire under you. Get angry, let your voice be heard, and most importantly, VOTE! If you are one of those fascist assholes who think banning books is a good idea, please, pull your head out of the sand, your ass, or wherever you crammed it, and read this book. Then, as a society, we should all read the rest of the Banned Books. All of them.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very rarely review short kids’ books but this, as an exception, was a well thought out commentary on the egregious behavior of self-righteous groups such as Moms For Liberty. Much of the text is intentionally redacted as a smug statement on these conservative driven groups who often characterize themselves as Constitutionalists but rarely understand Constitutionality. They often work tirelessly to impose their values on everyone else, particularly in taxpayer scenarios in which the majority simply does not ascribe to the same goals (loosely speaking). Banning books is a pertinent example in contemporary society. Instead of policing their own children, they want to police all children, ironically a very BIG government style system of intervention rather than the hands off conservative values they claim to espouse. Excellent choice to communicate this in a children’s book so children can begin to understand that, invariably, adults ruin most things.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

With starkly powerful artwork filling at least one side of each page in this picture book [3.5 for me!] as well as powerful words, this book demonstrates effectively how censorship works in action. It is, of course, the story of a book whose content has been subject to censors. Some of the words--sometimes one or two and other times big chunks of text--have been blacked out so that it's almost impossible to tell what is meant. Pages 18, 21, and 22 show this practice in particularly effective fashion. The book is challenged, defended, and finally thrown into the trash. It's interesting how the book undergoes redaction, removal, and then destruction, somewhat mirroring how the attacks on the right to read and First Amendment freedoms operate. This is a title to share, discuss, and reflect upon as readers ponder what effects these censorship efforts have on intellectual freedom and their own future ability to question the status quo or choose what they want to read.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This picture book takes a very hard topic and makes it accessible by using words paired with great illustrations and blacked out sections that manage to expose younger readers to why and how book banning happens. I especially like how Jonah Winter focuses on the process. Illustrator Gary Keller does a wonderful job showing emotions of those involved in how a book is challenged, removed from a library, and finally destroyed. 2

I have not had any elementary students ask about book challenges. That conversation seems to be more common in upper grades, but this book allows for students to understand what may be happening on the news or even in their own school district.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whoa - this one gave me chills. Although it's a children's picture book, I believe that teens and adults would get a lot out of it. The artwork by Gary Kelley is dystopian, with pictures of witches and devils in a dark color palette. Words are blacked out with explanations such as "This content is problematic and has been removed", "This content is not appropriate for children", "This content has not yet been approved". The pace of the book picks up at the end, where the blackout writing allows you to read the author's true message and it's chilling. Definitely pick this book up. It's a great artistic statement on book bans and censorship.

[Jacqueline · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Once upon a time there was a book ... and in this book, many of the words had been blacked out. "
This thought-provoking picture book follows the fate of a book which has been removed from a school by a group calling themselves WAR (for We Are Right). The story is told with black rectangles covering the so-called problematic content accompanied by bracketed explanations such as "[The factuality of this content is disputed.] The end result provides the reader with a heartbreaking examination of censorship.

[Tracy Barton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute new picture book in the library where I work. Very timely--I don't know if we just got it this week (Banned Books Week) or if it was only just brought to my attention this week. The book talks about a book that initially had "offensive" or "questionable" things in it redacted... eventually, the book is simply removed or "banned."
It's clever, thought I don't know that a lot of kids would enjoy it. Parents might; or they might be offended, which is kind of the point, isn't it?

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

What happens to a book that has first been challenged by those who deem it is harmful to children? In Jonah Winter's story, although first defended by a librarian, she is overruled and the self-named "Warriors" (WAR = we are right) censor, then remove (they prefer 'deselect') the book and throw it in the trash. You need to "see" this picture book. Winter's few words, most being blacked out and Gary Kelley's illustrations will both astound and make you teary.

[Liv Feisel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is banned due to the content of explaining banned books and exposing readers to the realities of censorship. I appreciate how the form of this book integrates physical explanations of censorship, for example the barring of words. It may be a risky one to try and include in classroom libraries, but I feel like it would be good supplemental material for a unit on Fahrenheit 451 or other similar books about fighting systemic censorship like The Giver.

[Ham · Rating 1 out of 5]

Art was meh. A bit too stylized and dark for me. As for the text—I’m all for guiding kids to appropriate books and helping them process the difficult ones, but this book (as much as I was able to stomach) came across as bitter, didactic, and self-righteous. It could be a fun concept if the venom was removed.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't ⬛ actually⬛⬛* write a review on this ⬛about ⬛⬛* because it might be ⬛*upsetting ⬛ *to small children, ⬛*,rodents,⬛*,⬛*, Pygmies,⬛* big children, people with parents and ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛! *

*Censors eh hum (throat clear) I mean de selectors found this unacceptable in my review.

This is a PERFECT way to explain why banning books is so so wrong. It is visual and clear and powerful!!!

[debbi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple, impactful children's book illustrating banning/censorship (or as the uninformed say: deselection). It's a parable: as Jesus used to explain complex ideas to the people who were unable to otherwise understand. I particularly enjoyed the pages where the uncensored words form complete ideas. The illustrations are dark: mirroring the darkness or evil of book banning.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I placed this for older readers, even adults, because they will understand better than children, the suppression of certain words or ideas. There are black boxes in the place of some words on each page from the title page to the ending copyright page. An organization call WAR (We Are Right) is used. The cover has horned devils peeking from the pages of a book.
It certainly makes a point.

[Elaine Fultz, Teacher Librarian, MLS · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting concept. Many of the words are blacked out, but the message is clear, mostly. A book (which book, this book?) is being banned and the vague explanations accompany the text. Illustrations are perfectly matched until the last page where there's a witch in the shape of a question mark. Huh? I must have missed something. Cool idea, odd execution overall.

[SamSamSam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the use of blacked-out text is a good way to symbolize the information that is being withheld from readers, but I don't know if this is an accessible or engaging explanation of censorship for kids. Definitely worth a read after discussing some of the basics of censorship with littles, though.

[Lauren Millard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting written book. Some parts have been redacted. Sometimes I feel like you have to read the blank but otherwise you read around the redacted blacked out words.

It helped us talk about banned books, what that means. I believe that while not every book is worth reading for lots of different reasons, everyone should have the right to books.

[Maura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit heavy handed, this book nevertheless introduces the idea of book banning in a way that could be highly engaging to young readers...by starting out with censored words and censoring more and more until almost nothing is left beyond the black bars.

A consideration for both elementary and secondary library collections.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The strength is in the simplicity.

"claim that they only want to protect children, when what they really want is power over everyone because they don't believe other people have the right to think for themselves."

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book that makes a legitimate point about book banning. Throughout the story the reader sees blacked out words as the story is told about a book that was banned and then removed from the library. Thought-provoking and interesting. Beautifully illustrated.

[Katie Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

So smart and wise and clever. For parents trying to explain the book banning attempts right now this may be helpful. The illustrations almost reminded me of film noir and added a lot too. Very pointed and rightfully so.

[Jennie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated, this book with blacked out words is a brilliant portrayal of they journey of a story becoming banned.

I could relate to this as a reader and as a library employee.


Highly recommended

[Jeannie · Rating 5 out of 5]

With all of the dystopian book bannings right now, this is a must for every library. 👏👏👏

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very timely picture book.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbelievably powerful.

[Emily Haage · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pair with Raj Haldar's new title, This Book is Banned, for an introduction to book banning and censorship for our youngest library friends.