PEN America reports that there were nearly 12,000 book bans in US public schools during the 2025-2026 school year, marking a record high since PEN began tracking such data in 2021. The state of Texas led with over 8,100 bans due to new censorship laws like SB13, surpassing Florida's previous lead. Notable banned titles include Patricia McCormick’s "Sold," the most frequently banned book, and works by Stephen King. The report highlights concerns about bans affecting young adult fiction and manga, which make up over 90% of banned youth literature.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-05,
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same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In the 2025-2026 school year, PEN America reported that there were nearly 12,000 book bans in US public schools, marking a record high since the organization began tracking such incidents in 2021. The total number of instances of book censorship has reached 34,000 during this period. Texas led with over 8,100 bans, largely due to state law SB13, which restricts certain categories of books in schools. This surge surpasses previous records set by Florida, which had topped the list for the past three years. The bans affected a record number of unique titles—more than 7,000, involving over 4,000 authors, illustrators, and translators across 114 school districts. These restrictions are partly attributed to new state-level censorship laws and AI tools that remove expansive numbers of titles from educational settings.
Written for “US Book Bans In Schools” on 2026-10-05,
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Leaning score withheld for article 57585: no verified evidence · logged 2026-10-05
The US saw almost 12,000 book bans in public schools during the 2025-2026 school year, the highest number in a single year, according to the free-expression non-profit PEN America.
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US → see → profit
In a report released on Monday, PEN America said that there had been 34,000 instances of book bans since the organization started tallying the increasing “book censorship crisis” across US schools in 2021.
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organization → release → 2021
PEN said that new state-level censorship laws fueled much of this increase, in conjunction with the implementation of artificial intelligence tools that removes an expansive number of titles.
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that → say → titles
Texas saw the greatest number of book bans in the 2025-2026 school year – more than 8,100.
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Texas → see → year
PEN America’s report said this surge in Texas stemmed from the Texas law SB13, which bars extensive categories of books in schools.
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which → say → schools
Florida had previously ranked No 1 in school book bans for the three previous years.
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Florida → rank → years
The bans involved a “record number of unique titles” – exceeding 7,000 – involving more than 4,000 authors, illustrators and translators.
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bans → involve → authors
Analysts found 114 school districts which banned books during the school year, “the highest number ever for a single year”.
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which → find → year
The most frequently banned title for the 2025-2026 school year was Sold by the journalist Patricia McCormick.
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title → ban → journalist
This young adult novel involves a teen from Nepal who is sold into sexual servitude.
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who → involve → servitude
Stephen King was the most banned author for the second year running, PEN America said.
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America → ban → year
“Mostly I feel angry on behalf of the women that I interviewed for the story: young women who’ve been sold into sexual slavery, who told their stories so the world could know what was going on.
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what → feel → stories
To hear people, or book banners, say that their accounts are pornographic is so disrespectful to them,” McCormick said in a statement issued by PEN America.
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McCormick → hear → America
“It’s also really disrespectful to the students who seek out that book.
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who → ’ → book
There are kids who need a book like that because they have some kind of sexual exploitation experience in their own life, and there’s something about reading a story about someone who’s six degrees away from you – a girl in Nepal – that inspires a certain amount of empathy and understanding that you might not have for yourself.”
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you → be → yourself
The bans also revealed worrisome prohibitions on books youth seek out, such as fiction and manga.
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youth → reveal → fiction
Fiction comprised more than 90% of young adult titles subject to bans, per PEN America.
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Fiction → comprise → America
Kasey Meehan, director of PEN America’s Freedom to Read program, said: “When reading for pleasure is in decline across all ages, bans on popular and engaging titles are exceptionally tragic.
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bans → read → titles
“Schools should be doing everything possible to connect kids with reading by introducing them to engaging stories and formats,” Meehan also said in the statement released by PEN America.
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Meehan → do → America
“Instead, many are doing the opposite, banning books that help kids see themselves in literature, deepen their understanding and empathy of others, and develop their imaginations.
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kids → do → imaginations
While book bans are increasingly pervasive, parents, students and educators are fighting the conservative turn seen in many US school districts – including book bans.
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parents → fight → bans
Progressive school board candidates bested many rightwing candidates in many Florida elections this year.
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candidates → best → elections
The Aporia
