Books. Hundreds of books hungry minds will never get to read. Thousands of books have been banned in the United States, the number doubling over the last two years. 

A banned book has material that can span from language, politics, and religion. Another key factor for the book banning is sexuality. 

Texas has banned many books as of late, and has banned over eight hundred with the statistics only increasing. 

“Maus”, a Holocaust based book with mice and cats is banned for reasons one may not expect. This book is banned in several schools due to one thing. Nudity of the characters. Nudity is when a living thing is presented with a lack of clothing. 

The LGBTQ+  community is also getting backlash through book bans. One of the most common books banned written is “Gender Queer: A Memoir” By Maia Kobabe. This book depicts Kobabe’s struggle to find gender identity and sexual orientation peace. 

Kids who went through the fifth grade in D.C. Everest have read a book that is banned in many other places for topics of religion where God was compared with other important figures in history. “A Wrinkle In Time” by Madeleine L’Engle. 

“A Wrinkle in Time” is about a girl in search of her father. Meg Murry meets beasts and creatures alike, united in one goal to stop the Black Thing. This book may not appear bad to many. “A Wrinkle in Time” was banned due to religious figure Jesus Christ fighting alongside important figures in history such as Gandhi and Former President Barack Obama. 

A lot of popular books have been banned for numerous reasons. For example, “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins, “Where’s Waldo” by Martin Handford, “Harry Potter” by J.K Rowling, and “Animal Farm” by George Orwell. Many of these books have been banned for several reasons, such as supporting witchcraft or nudity, even if it was only for half a second.

Many books used in schools have also been banned in many places. Books such as “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck have been banned from multiple schools across the country. 

“Books should not be banned for their content or material,” said sophomore Peter Schwantes. 

Banning books is not just a school issue, but a legal issue as well. “Book bans violate the First Amendment because they deprive children or students of the right to receive information and ideas,” according to njsbf.org. (New Jersey State Bar) 

Many people think that books banned for their content or material should not be banned as many of the reasons are “not understandable.” An example of some of the sillier reasons are they show kids in dangerous situations, minimal swearing, or controversial topics. 

“In my opinion, students should have the autonomy to choose their reading material,” said Ms. Rosenthal, English teacher.

 Students tend to have the same mindset. In their mind the only thing banning books is going to make them want to read the books more. Most kids, when given something they cannot do, want to do it more. In short, banning certain books only gives people the incentive to read them. 

“I find it equivalent to the burning of books in Nazi Germany. If they are going to ban books, they should ban the Bible,” said junior Gibson Bennett. A lot of the time when parents have an issue with a book, it is because of their religion. Religion is a major reason most books are as challenged as they are. When it comes to what books are banned, how do they decide the religious ones that are banned, and the non-religious ones that are banned, too? 

A topic consistently brought up is whether or not the Bible should be banned as well, because a lot of the topics other books are banned for are in the Bible. There are topics such as adultery, murder, rape, genocide, and other inappropriate mannerisms are stated in the Bible whether that be directly or indirectly. 

Reading is something seen all throughout the school. Taking away books that may spark their interest or telling them that they are reading a book not allowed in school could put out their spark.