Banned Books Week takes place October 4–10. This year’s theme is “Let Books Be.”

4,235

Total number of unique titles challenged in libraries in 2025, as documented by the American Library Association’s (ALA’s) Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF). That number is the second highest on record, just short of 2023’s 4,240 unique titles challenged.

2007

Average publication year of the books on ALA’s list of the Top 11 Most Challenged Books of 2025 . Only four titles have been published since 2016.

92%

Share of the 713 reported library censorship attempts in 2025 that were initiated by pressure groups, government officials, and decision makers . In 2023, only 35% of censorship attempts came from those groups.

$275,000

Settlement to be paid by Saline County, Arkansas, to former library director Patty Hector .…