Banned Together: Our Fight for Readers' Rights - Edited by Ashley Hope Pérez - ★★★★
EDITOR: Ashley Hope Pérez
GENRE: YA Nonfiction Anthology.
PUBLICATION DATE: March 4, 2025.
RATING: 4.1 stars.
In a Nutshell: A YA anthology that focusses on the power of books and the impact of banning them. Mostly nonfiction with entries in the form of essays, comics, and poems. OwnVoices. Inclusive, informative, incisive and inspiring. Most of the write-ups are great; some are also a bit disturbing. Definitely recommended, and not just to the YA audience.
I don’t think I need to offer any introduction on why banning books is a ridiculous notion. Even progressive societies opt for book banning, and worse, books are banned for the silliest of reasons. As such, the next generation must understand the futility of such actions and necessity of standing up for everyone’s right to read what they want. Of all book-related social topics, this is the most relevant issue today. Several shocking stats connected to book challenges and bans in the USA are contained in this anthology, and I dare say, the figures are even worse now. (I speak of the USA only because this anthology is written in the US context and aimed at US readers. India is no less when it comes to book bans. But because of our abysmal, almost non-existent public/school library system, we feel the brunt differently.)
This anthology, aimed at YA readers, contains eighteen pieces exploring book bans on a personal and societal level. We hear from YA writers whose books have been targeted, from members of the LGBTQIA+ community who saw themselves in books and tried to pay it forward, and from activists trying to make a difference. In many ways, this is an OwnVoices work because every contributor is representative of minority voices in some way or the other. Many are Americans of BIPOC ethnicity such as Mexican, Vietnamese, and Indian. There are also American writers from the Native Nations.
As one of the contributing authors wrote, “Being a banned author is having your life’s work reduced to a count of profanities or a particular scene.” Many of the contributors have faced book challenges and bans and hence their voices contain a genuineness and hurt that cannot be pretended. Editor Ashley Hope Pérez also has a banned book under her belt, so she knows first-hand the experience of such ad-hoc and unjustified censorship. Her introductory writeup and her concluding note are as powerful as expected. I have hardly been as impressed with the editor of any anthology.
The format of the pieces is quite diverse as its authors. The length of the entries also varies, going from 2 pages to 22 pages. Most of the entries are nonfiction, mainly essays but also some poems, manifestos, graphic comics, and epistolary works. This mixed-media approach also creates an interesting heterogeneity of styles while reading. However, there are a couple of fictional entries as well. I wish the fictional pieces had been marked as such. I didn’t even realise that one article was fictional as it was written in first person and seemed so true to life. Only when I looked up the author online did I learn that she had not written about her lived experiences. This could be slightly misleading to readers, especially as the anthology is dominantly nonfiction.
The topics in these entries speak about banned books from various angles, including childhood experiences, queerness and identity, safe sex, assaults, PCOS, and a lot more. So if you think that the write-ups might feel monotonous after a while, you are wrong. As the authors infuse a sense of their own struggles into these works, each essay feels like a piece of themselves inserted into this collection with love and care, sometimes even with passion and rebellion.
There is a lot of content even beyond the eighteen guest author articles. There are lists of banned books based on topics, FAQs about book bans and challenges, ideas for taking action against bans, lists of ridiculous reasons books have been banned, and a lot more. These appear as informative interludes after every guest piece.
The author biographies are presented just before their write-up, a decision I love as it is much easier to know the credentials of the writer if their intro is right next to their work. The illustrated portraits of the authors are a bonus.
This book would easily earn 5 stars for its intent. Evaluating the content objectively, most of the essays deliver to or above par. A couple of the entries could have clicked better for me had they not been so aggressive in tone. To some extent, I understand this anger as a legitimate reaction to oppression and suppression. However, I feel that yelling a point makes it lose its efficacy. The heartfelt, calm-headed yet impassioned essays resonate much better.
As always, I rated the entries individually. For once, I even rated the poems, not for their poetic attributes but for their voice and message. Of the eighteen pieces, a whopping thirteen reached/crossed the 4-star mark. Most of the rest earned 3-3.5 stars. So this ends up a high performing collection.
Here are my top favourites with 4.5+ stars:
📚 I Made the Most Banned Book in America – Maia Kobabe: A graphic comic memoir with several shocking statistics on book bans in the USA. “Make sure librarians feel the love stronger than the hate.” – all my love for this sentiment! - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
📚 The Things, the Things That Happened, the Things That Happened to Me – Elana K. Arnold: This personal essay made me feel disgusted… not with the author but on behalf of the author. A very disturbing piece, so maybe it needs to come with a content advisory. At the same time, I wish for young girls to read it for self-protection and awareness, and for young boys to read it to learn what not to do. “As long as there have been women, there have been ways to punish them for being women” – 100% right! - ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
📚 Dancing with Haters – Ashley Hope Pérez: Probably one of the cleverest and most beautiful poems I have ever read. Yup, I said “poem” and I called it clever and even gave it 5 stars. That’s how impressed this poetryphobe is with this poem. - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
📚 Mature Themes – MariNaomi: A heartfelt open letter about the power of books and their role in saving lives. This bibliophile was touched! - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
📚 Read Banned Books – Traci Sorell: Erasure of history is a norm. Books are what let us know what our ancestors did wrong and what we need to avoid. Those who ban books basically want the wrongs to continue. Proven well by this acrostic poem plus essay. - ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
📚 Christopher Lau: Unban Coolies and YouTube Activism – Ashley Hope Pérez and Debbie Fong: A graphic comic about youth who do what we adults don’t – take concrete action instead of being keyboard warriors. All my love and blessings to such youngsters! - ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
📚 Getting to Know Your Hate Mail – Ashley Hope Pérez: If I could live my life with even 10% of the coolness and humour that this inspiring lady has, I would be a happy woman. What a fabulous little write-up this was! I am going to use its lessons to handle trolls better. - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
📚 Imagining the Unimaginable – Ellen Hopkins: Mainly a fiction-in-verse about a historical adoption story, but also containing a note about the author’s personal experience as an adoptive child. I am not sure if youngsters would enjoy this piece, not just because most of it is a lengthy verse poem but also because it is historical and they might not be able to relate to the era. (Do kids today even know who Bing Crosby is?) But I loved it, so I hope they will too. - ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨
Honorary mentions with 4 stars:
🌈 Wings of Pages and Words – Robin Stevenson: An author’s experience about being the writer of queer fiction and nonfiction in the USA. Not a pretty picture. 😕
🌈 O-Town Blues – Brendan Kiely: A disturbing epistolary story that is probably the most realistic depiction of many USians today.
🌈 Standing at the Center – Kyle Lukoff: A thought-provoking piece about being a banned author in the USA and how it messes with your head.
🌈 Our Whole Radical Anatomy – Kelly Jensen: So many thought-provoking sentiments in this essay. This one – “It takes effort to see yourself as worthy of living” – really broke me.
🌈 Unstoppable Readers: The Vandegrift Banned Book Club – Ashley Hope Pérez and Debbie Fong: An inspiring graphic comic about two young girls making a difference in their little community by discussing banned books.
It goes without saying that this collection should be a must-read for every young adult (and even adult) reader in the USA and beyond. The sanctity of the freedom to be you (and to write/read what you want) and the importance of learning history that has been swept under the carpet cannot be denied. The right to be seen and heard in fiction belongs to everyone and not just to white majoritarians. I hope this collection spreads awareness not just about the fundamental flaws of book banning but also about actions that can be taken at an individual and communal level to stop such bans and ensure fair and just representation, both of minority voices and of past injustices.
While I have no intention of censoring a book about book banning, I do want to advocate some restraint and caution to sensitive readers. A couple of the essays contain highly disturbing events. Their being actual facts and not fiction makes the emotional impact worse. (I wish trigger warnings had been provided for these entries, such as the one that had an attempted sexual assault and the school shooting.) Also, the language isn't always polite, though the cuss words are mostly direct quotes from abusive messages received by the authors. So if you are in a delicate headspace, wait until a stronger time or for a supportive buddy reader before you tackle the book.
Much, much recommended as long as you go in prepared for an educational but also alarming read. We need to arm ourselves and our teens for a tough future, and such books provide the right ammunition.
4.1 stars, based on the average of my rating for each article. (If you are familiar with my ratings, you know that an average that goes to 4 stars and beyond is outstanding for an anthology.)
My thanks to Hear Our Voices Book Tours and Holiday House for a complimentary copy of 'Banned Together: Our Fight for Readers' Rights', and for allowing me to be a part of this blog tour. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
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Blurb:
A dazzling YA anthology that spotlights the transformative power of books while equipping teens to fight for the freedom to read, featuring the voices of 15 diverse, award-winning authors and illustrators.
Books are disappearing from shelves across the country.
What does this mean for authors, illustrators, and—most crucially—for young readers?
This bold collection of fiction, memoir, poetry, graphic narratives, essays, and other genres explores book bans through various lenses, and empowers teens to fight back. From moving personal accounts to clever comebacks aimed at censorship, fifteen legendary YA authors and illustrators confront the high-stakes question of what is lost when books are kept from teens.
Contributors include Elana K. Arnold, Nikki Grimes, Ellen Hopkins, Kelly Jensen, Brendan Kiely, Maia Kobabe, Bill Konigsberg, Kyle Lukoff, MariNaomi, Trung Lê Nguyễn, Ashley Hope Pérez, Isabel Quintero, Traci Sorell, Robin Stevenson, and Padma Venkatraman; the collection is a star-studded must-read that packs strength and power into every last word.
Striking illustrations from Ignatz-nominated artist Debbie Fong pair perfectly with the searing, impactful narrative. Resources include tips from the Vandegrift Banned Book Club and other teen activists, as well as extensive recommended book lists, a How to Start Your Own Little Free Library flier, and more.
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Editor Ashley Hope Pérez:
"When I’m not reading, writing, or teaching, I hang out with my sons, Liam Miguel and Ethan Andrés. In the scraps of time that remain, I also like to run (I did the Houston Marathon in 2007 and the Chicago Marathon in 2009), bake (but let’s don’t revive the “Cookie Girl” nickname, please), watch movies, and collage.
My novels are WHAT CAN'T WAIT, THE KNIFE AND THE BUTTERFLY, and OUT OF DARKNESS, a 2016 Printz honor book and named one of BOOKLIST's "50 Best YA Books of All Time." THE NEW YORK TIMES called it a "layered tale of color lines, love and struggle." OUT OF DARKNESS has been banned and removed in many school districts as a result of coordinated attacks against youth access to diverse books."
Connect with her on:
Website: https://ashleyperez.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashleyhopeperez
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AshleyHopePerez
X/Twitter: https://x.com/ashleyhopeperez
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Check out this book:
Purchase from:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Banned-Together-Fight-Readers-Rights/dp/082345830X
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Banned-Together-Fight-Readers-Rights/dp/082345830X
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Banned-Together-Fight-Readers-Rights/dp/082345830X
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This has been a stop on the #BannedTogether blog tour conducted by Hear Our Voices Tours. (@hearourvoicestours) Thanks for stopping by!
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