Ban This Book

Ban This Book is a work of contemporary juvenile fiction by Alan Gratz. Published in 2017, the novel features nine-year-old protagonist and prolific reader, Amy Anne Ollinger. When a classmate’s mother successfully persuades the school board to ban a list of books including Amy Anne’s favorite, Amy Anne establishes a secret lending library in her locker comprised entirely of the challenged titles. Themes of power and control, innocence to systems and society, and betrayals of trust develop as Amy Anne discovers ways to make her voice heard on the issue. Ban This Book was a 2018-2019 North Carolina Battle of the Books selection, a 2019-2020 Massachusetts Children’s Book Award Nominee, and a 2018-2019 Vermont Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award Nominee. This guide references the 2017 edition by Tom Doherty Associates, an imprint of Macmillan.

Plot Summary

Nine-year-old Amy Anne Ollinger arrives one morning at Shelbourne Elementary intent on checking out her favorite book from the library, but Mrs. Jones, the librarian, tells her that the school board recently forced its removal from the shelves. Mrs. Sarah Spencer, PTA president and mother of classmate Trey, insists that Amy Anne’s favorite book, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs.