US school book bans reach record high in 2025-2026

Book bans in United States public schools have reached a record high during the 2025-2026 school year, with PEN America documenting nearly 12,000 cases involving approximately 7,000 individual titles. This surge represents the highest annual figure since the organization began tracking censorship in 2021.

Texas has emerged as the leader in book bans, recording over 8,100 instances, surpassing Florida. The increase in Texas is attributed to state law SB13 and the use of artificial intelligence to evaluate and flag titles, which often results in a snowball effect of removals. In Florida, political pressure has led various districts to remove dozens of titles.

Stephen King has been identified as the most censored author for the second consecutive year, with 312 recorded bans affecting 81 of his works. Other notable bans include classics such as ‘Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl’ and ‘Jane Eyre’. Many bans are triggered by passages regarding sexuality, including the book ‘Sold’, which follows a teenager from Nepal.

PEN America suggests that the rise in censorship is driven by political pressure, vague state laws, and the use of technological tools that bypass the expertise of librarians.