Indianapolis author John Green's debut novel listed among most banned in 2022
John Green's 2006 novel, "Looking for Alaska," has been published in more than 30 languages and taught in both high school and college, according to the author's website.
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His debut novel also has been on multiple bestseller lists. But the Indianapolis-based author's first published novel now has a new honor: It's listed among the American Library Association's most banned books in 2022. It's tied with Stephen Chobsky's "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" for fifth place.
About 'Looking for Alaska' by John Green
"Looking for Alaska" follows the story of a boy who leaves home for boarding school and meets Alaska Young, described as "clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy."
The novel was adapted into a streaming series on Hulu in 2019.
Why has 'Looking for Alaska' been banned?
An American Library Association news release lists two reasons for challenging the book: claims that it is sexually explicit; and LGBTQIA+ content.
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Green disagrees with opponents' thoughts on the the sexual experiences depicted in his writing.
"I just don't think 'Looking for Alaska' is pornography,' Green said in the TikTok video. "And I think reading it that way is a little weird."
A Florida news outlet's 2022 article describes why one school board member challenged the book, which also was on the list in 2016. "There are thousands of parents with high standards who try everything that they can to make sure that their kids that don’t have access to things that are encouraging them to go and have sex,” the board member said.
In a Q&A on Green's author site, he explains why some aspects of "Looking for Alaska" aren't particularly "clean."
"I wanted to write about sexuality and substance abuse because it felt true to the characters," he wrote. "When you're a teenager, you’re doing all kinds of important things for the first time, and in writing Alaska I wanted to deromanticize some of those firsts."
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What other books were the biggest targets of banning in 2022?
In addition to Green's novel, these 12 titles were listed among the most challenged books of the year.
"Gender Queer" by Maia Kobabe
"All Boys Aren't Blue" by George M. Johnson
"The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison
"Flamer" by Mike Curato
"The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky
"Lawn Boy" by Jonathan Evison
"The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie
"Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez
"A Court of Mist and Fury" by Sarah J. Maas
"Crank" by Ellen Hopkins
"Me and Earl and the Dying Girl" by Jesse Andrews
"This Book Is Gay" by Juno Dawson
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USA TODAY reporter Barbara VanDenburgh contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: John Green novel listed among 2022 most banned, challenged books
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