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For the third year in a row, Penguin Random House is doing the Banned Wagon Tour, which gives away banned books—for free!—during Banned Books Week (October 5-11). This year, they’ll be visiting libraries and indie bookstores in Washington D.C. and Philadelphia.
This year’s tour also includes Save Our Stories Supper at the Martin Luther King Jr. Library, a private event with guests including Ibram X. Kendi, author of How To Be an Antiracist; Malinda Lo, author of Last Night at the Telegraph Club; and James Baldwin’s nephews.
The Banned Wagon will be giving away 30 titles from picture books to adult nonfiction, all of which are currently banned or challenged in schools and libraries in states across the U.S.. The Banned Wagon also has a QR code, and every scan will donate a book to a community in need via First Book. Anyone donating can include a note about a banned book they love.
“This week is not just for celebration—it’s about action,” said Skip Dye, Chair of Penguin Random House’s Intellectual Freedom Taskforce. “By standing together as publishers, authors, educators, librarians, students, and readers, we can ensure that shelves remain filled with diverse ideas and perspectives, and that the next generation grows up with the freedom to explore them.”
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“Books and stories are essential to our identities, our histories, and our future,” said Alyssa Taylor, Director of Brand Marketing, Penguin Random House. “We’re proud to take the Banned Wagon to Washington D.C. and Philadelphia–two iconic cities in our country’s history–to help protect every American’s access to books that make it possible to read, think, and learn freely.”
Some of the books being given away this year are:
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
- The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
- Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
- This Is Your Time by Ruby Bridges
- My Two Border Towns by David Bowles, illustrated by Erika Meza
- Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry, illustrated by Vashti Harrison
- The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
- The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
- Colonization and the Wampanoag Story by Linda Coombs
- The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
- Change Sings by Amanda Gorman, illustrated by Loren Long
- The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
- The 1619 Project by Nikole Hannah-Jones and edited by Caitlin Roper, Ilene Silverman, and Jake Silverstein
- I Am Jazz by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings, illustrated by Shelagh McNicholas
- The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
- How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
- Families, Families, Families! by Suzanne Lang and Max Lang
- Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
- Beloved by Toni Morrison
- The Rainbow Parade by Emily Neilson
- 1984 by George Orwell
- Born Ready by Jodie Patterson, illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow
- All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold, illustrated by Suzanne Kaufman
- I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez
- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
- Born Behind Bars by Padma Venkatraman
- On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
- Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
- Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
- The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
If you’re surprised to see any of these titles on this list, consider subscribing to Book Riot’s Literary Activism newsletter to stay up-to-date on book censorship news.
You can learn more about the Banned Wagon Tour on the website. You can learn more about Penguin Random House’s other anti-book ban initiatives on the Penguin Random House website.
Find more news and stories of interest from the book world in Breaking in Books.