| Reading the titles that have been challenged and removed from public-school libraries across the country.  Illustration by Pavel Popov In an urgent new piece, the critic Katy Waldman looks at a consequential document of the culture wars—a list of books nominated for removal in Duval County public-school libraries, in Florida—one which forms “a map of cultural anxieties and a portrait of books as enduring flash points.” The themes of race, history, profanity, and sex generate a large share of the concern: works by Roald Dahl and Judy Blume are among the offenders, but there are also more peculiar nominations—“Little Red Riding Hood” was censored for “violence, wine.” Book bans haven’t been limited to Florida. A PEN America paper found more than two thousand instances of book banning in thirty-two states between July, 2021, and June, 2022. Waldman thoughtfully examines the contents of many such books, and digs into what the groups challenging these reads are really scared of. “In their vision of childhood—a green, sweet-smelling land invented by Victorians and untouched by violence, or discrimination, or death—white, straight, and cisgender characters are G-rated,” Waldman writes. “All other characters, meanwhile, come with warning labels.” Listen to podcasts? We’d like to know your favorites. Take a brief survey » | 
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