Banned Books Week 2025 is October 5th - 11th, and it’s the perfect opportunity to take action to protect your right to read!
To help you figure out where to start, we have put together reading challenges for adults and kids with a mix of reading, education, and advocacy goals to accomplish during the month of October.
To help you complete the challenges, we have resources, ideas, and book lists for the prompts!
Once you get three in a row, submit the form by October 31st (because book banning is Scary!) for a chance to win a $25 gift card to Gather Paper & Clay.
Join our Banned Books Week Challenge
Resources for the Adults and YA Challenge
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Attacks on intellectual freedom often come at the local level. Here’s how you can help:
New Yorkers for Intellectual Freedom has resources for reaching out in your community, including a wonderful sample letter that can be sent to your local school board
Unite Against Book Bans has an Action Toolkit with talking points, as well as tips for attending school board meetings, contacting decision makers, and grassroots organizing.
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PEN America has a list of documentaries about the issue of book banning and censorship
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Books bans hurt more than our communities and our freedoms, they also hurt authors. The American Library Association (ALA) has hosted letter writing campaigns to authors through the Dear Banned Author initiative, and we encourage you to participate.
Author contact information can be found here.
Resources for the Kids Challenge
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The National Coalition Against Censorship has put together the Kids’ Right to Read Toolkit, a wonderful resource for parents, educators, and students. This is a wonderful starting point for learning more about book bans and how to protect students’ rights.
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If you don’t want to make a drawing from scratch, there are plenty of options to give you some inspiration! Here are some coloring sheets to get you started.
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If you don’t yet have a library card, now is the perfect time to sign up!
You can find your local library here.
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Books bans hurt more than our communities and our freedoms, they also hurt authors. The American Library Association (ALA) has hosted letter writing campaigns to authors through the Dear Banned Author initiative, and we encourage you to participate.
Author contact information can be found here.