The Most Banned Authors in U.S. Schools

Stephen King, Ellen Hopkins, Sarah J. Maas, Jodi Picoult, and Yũsei Matsui topped the list of authors whose books were most frequently banned in the U.S. in the last school year, according to a new report. PEN America, a nonprofit focused on defending freedom of expression, recorded 6,870 instances of books being banned in the 2024-2025 school year across 23 states and 87 public school districts. While that’s a decline from the more than 10,000 instances in the previous school year, the figure is still much higher than it was several years ago. Since July 2021, PEN America has documented nearly 23,000 instances when books have been banned in 45 states and 451 public school districts. “Censorship pressures have expanded and escalated, taking on different forms—laws, directives, guidance that sow confusion, lists of books mislabeled as ‘explicit’ materials, and ‘do not buy’ lists,” Kasey Meehan, director of PEN America’s Freedom to Read program, said in a press release. “A disturbing ‘everyday banning’ and normalization of censorship has worsened and spread over the last four years. The result is unprecedented.” The vast majority of the book bans in the 2024-2025 school year were concentrated in three states: Florida, with 2,304; Texas, with 1,781; and Tennessee, with 1,622. Those three states have enacted laws that allow for the removal of books some may consider to be “inappropriate” for various reasons, including “sexual conduct.” In several other states—including Maine, New York, and California—PEN American didn’t identify any instances of books being banned. Here’s what to know about the five most banned authors. Stephen King The bestselling horror author behind dozens of titles including Carrie, It, and The Shining was the most banned author during the 2024-2025 school year. Eighty-seven of his books were banned a total of 206 times. King has publicly blasted book bans in the past. Last week, he posted on social media about being “the most banned author” in the country, suggesting that people read his books and “see what all the pissing & moaning is about.” “Self-righteous book banners don’t always get to have their way,” he said in the post. “This is still America, dammit.” Ellen Hopkins Ellen Hopkins, a young adult fiction author, was the second most banned author, with her books being banned a total of 167 times during the last school year. Eighteen of her titles were banned. Hopkins has penned more than a dozen young adult novels, including the Crank, Burned, and Impulse series, as well as two novels she describes as middle grade and several for adult readers. She, like King, has been a vocal critic of book bans. In a 2023 ACLU of South Carolina blog post, Hopkins addressed the question of why her books are targeted by bans, noting that some of her characters are members of the LGBTQ+ community or are people of color, and some of her books for young adult readers contain sexual situations, including assault, abuse, and young love, though she said they “never approach” what would be described as steamy. The reason most often given for banning her books, she said, is “sexual explicitness.” “I write where my readers live, and teens experience those things every day. I write truthfully because I respect their intellect, curiosity, and sophistication,” she said. “My goals, always, have been to bring broader perspective to their relatively narrow view. To show possible outcomes to choices they’ll likely face and help them make more informed decisions. And, for those who’ve already taken wrong turns, or had all choice stolen from them, to bring hope and give them a voice.” “It’s unthinkable that a handful of people have been allowed to remove any books from library shelves, to decide for everyone else what is or isn’t appropriate reading material,” she continued. “As for protecting our kids, I often say ignorance is no armor. Knowledge is their absolute best weapon, and books are among the safest spaces to gather information.” Sarah J. Maas Fantasy author Sarah J. Maas was the next most banned author: 21 of her titles were banned a total of 162 times. Maas is best known for her Throne of Glass and A Court of Thorns and Roses series. Read more: How Sarah J. Maas Built a Sprawling Fantasy Multiverse Six of Maas’ books, including all the books in the latter series, were included on a list of more than a dozen books that the Utah State Board of Education said last summer would be banned from all the public schools in the state.  Jodi Picoult The fourth most banned author was Jodi Picoult, the bestselling author of books including My Sister’s Keeper and The Book of Two Ways. Twenty-three of Picoult’s books were banned 62 times overall. Picoult has also condemned book bans for years. Speaking at a festival last year, she said that having her books banned from schools was “not a badge of honor,” and that “the loss of free speech is a very, very slippery slope.” While she called herself fortunate because many of her readers were not getting her books from school libraries, she expressed concern for authors “whose livelihood is writing for middle grade and young adult readers,” saying that “they are suffering greatly” from book bans. Yũsei Matsui Yũsei Matsui, a Japanese manga artist, became one of the top five most banned authors for the first time last school year, with 22 of his titles being banned a total of 54 times. Matsui is the creator behind the manga series Assassination Classroom, among other titles.