Summary and Reviews of Banned Together by Ashley Pérez

Media Reviews

Shelf Awareness This powerful compilation of essays, stories, comics, and poetry features 15 authors banding together over being banned; their work is enhanced by Ignatz Award-nominated illustrator Debbie Fong's graphics.

Booklist (starred review) Serving as as a manifesto against book banning delivered by the authors whose livelihood is on the line, this collection movingly reminds readers of the power they have against censorship. The authors' encouraging, candid voices teach readers how to stand up to book bans by supporting challenged titles in communities and schools and helping the community see the value in being open to learning about issues they may fear or not understand. Powerful reading for a crucial moment.

Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Editor Pérez introduces readers to teens around the country who are taking action to ensure their freedom to read and provides tips, reading suggestions, and other resources. Together these diverse contributors' voices form a potent whole. An empowering and critically timely blueprint for action.

Publishers Weekly (starred review) Featuring 15 authors and illustrators, including Nikki Grimes, Kyle Lukoff, and Traci Sorell, this necessary anthology—comprising fiction, memoir, poetry, comics, essays, and more—equips teens with resources to rally against book bans and fight for the freedom to read...[T]his anthology acts as a call to action and a form of protest, using the power of words to inspire hope and unity.

 Amanda Jones, author of That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America This brilliant collection of essays, poems, and stories encapsulates the tragic push by extremists to ban books in the United States, but also gives hope to those who believe in libraries and human rights. It has been said that books save lives, and this book proves just that. It is inherent that we push for the freedom to read, the first amendment, and the fact that libraries are for everyone.

 Malinda Lo, National Book Award Winner and New York Times-bestselling author of Last Night at the Telegraph Club Banned Together is an insightful, moving, and important resource for teens and all readers who are fighting the alarming rise in censorship across the U.S. It is filled with hard-won wisdom from authors whose books have been banned and who have themselves been targeted by right-wing hate. Give this to every young person to better equip them to stand up for their rights and their communities.