List of books banned by governments

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Many societies have banned certain books. This is a partial list of books that have been banned by governments, for various reasons. These bans can be enacted at the national or sub-national level, and can carry legal penalties for their infraction.

Books are also forbidden by religious authorities, who prohibit members of their faith from reading them, but without this being a criminal offense.

Books may be challenged at a local level, and possibly removed from schools or libraries as a result, but not legally banned in the involved community; examples of such from the United States can be found at List of most commonly challenged books in the U.S.

[edit] Background

Books are banned for a variety of reasons. For example, one reason is to "protect" the public from their contents. The threats that are cited to justify the bans may be abstract (e.g., "obscenity") or more concrete (e.g., "public safety").

For example, various scriptures have been banned (and sometimes burned) at several points in history. For example, the Bible, the Qur'an, and other religious scriptures have all been subjected to censorship and have been banned by various governments. Similarly, books based on the scriptures have also been banned, such as Leo Tolstoy's The Kingdom of God Is Within You, which was banned in Russia for being anti-establishment. Non-religious books deemed critical of the state or its interests are another common target for banning.[1]

Books are frequently banned as "obscene" or "indecent" when they are perceived to be a threat to "public morals". Sexual content - especially in forms which are taboo in a given society - is the most common basis for such bans. In modern societies it is typical for material with sexual content to be made unavailable to children, without banning it altogether for adults, but certain kinds of content may receive a complete ban.

Books that present criminal matters have also been subjected to censorship, usually on the grounds that they either incite or assist in committing crimes. Small-press titles that have become infamous by being banned include The Anarchist Cookbook and Hit Man.


Contents: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z— See also — References — External links


[edit] List of banned books

This literature-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.


[edit] A

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
About a Silence in Literature Živorad Stojković Essay Banned in Yugoslavia by court order in 1951[2].
Albertine Christian Krohg Novel Banned in Norway in 1886, immediately after its publishing
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Lewis Carroll Children's Novel/Adventure Banned in the province of Hunan, China (1931) for the portrayal of anthropomorphized animals acting on the same level as humans.[3]
All Quiet on the Western Front Erich Maria Remarque Anti-war novel Banned in Nazi Germany for demoralizing and insulting the Wehrmacht.[4]
American Psycho Bret Easton Ellis Fiction Novel Theoretically banned in the Australian state of Queensland. Sale restricted to persons 18 and over in some other states.
Angaray Sajjad Zaheer Progressive short stories Banned in 1936 by the British government [5]
Animal Farm George Orwell Political novella Confiscated in Germany by Allied troops. Banned in 1946 in Yugoslavia. Also banned in Kenya in 1991 and in the United Arab Emirates in 2002.[6]
Areopagitica John Milton Essay Banned in the Kingdom of England for political reasons.[7]
As I Lay Dying William Faulkner Novel Banned in Kentucky for language and for being anti-Christian.[8]
A Spoon on Earth Hyeon Gi-yeong Novel Banned for distribution in South Korean military as one of 23 books banned from Aug 1st 2008. [9]

[edit] B

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism Ha-Joon Chang Nonfiction Banned for distribution in South Korean military as one of 23 books banned from Aug 1st 2008.[10]
Brave New World Aldous Huxley Novel Banned in Ireland in 1932.[11]
Burger's Daughter Nadine Gordimer Novel Banned in South Africa in 1979 for going against the government's racial policies.[12]

[edit] C

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Candide Voltaire Novel Seized by US Customs in 1930 for obscenity.[13]
Curved River Živojin Pavlović story collection In 1963 in Yugoslavia withdrawn by the publisher (Nolit) at request of SDB officials.[14].

[edit] D

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown Novel Banned in Lebanon after Catholic leaders deemed it offensive to Christianity (See Inaccuracies in The Da Vinci Code) [15]
The Death of Lorca Ian Gibson Biography, True crime Banned briefly in Spain.[16]
The Diary of Anne Frank Anne Frank Biography, True crime Banned in Lebanon for "portray[ing] Jews, Israel or Zionism favorably." "Inquiring further, he discovered a long list of prohibited books, films and music," including "William Styron's 'Sophie's Choice'; Thomas Keneally's 'Schindler's List'; Thomas Friedman's 'From Beirut to Jerusalem'; books by Philip Roth, Saul Bellow and Isaac Bashevis Singer."[17]
Dictionary of Modern Serbo-Croatian Language Miloš Moskovljević dictionary Banned in Yugoslavia by court order in 1966, at request of Mirko Tepavac, because "some definitions can cause disturbance among citizens"[14].
Doctor Zhivago Boris Pasternak Novel Banned within the USSR until 1988 for its criticism of the Bolshevik Party.[18]
Droll Stories Honoré de Balzac Banned in Canada in 1914.[19]

[edit] E

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
El Señor Presidente Miguel Ángel Asturias Novel Banned in Guatemala because it went against the ruling political leaders. [20]

[edit] F

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Fanny Hill or Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure John Cleland Novel Banned in the USA in 1821 for obscenity, then again in 1963. This was the last book ever banned in the USA.[4] See also Memoirs v. Massachusetts.
The Federal Mafia Irwin Schiff Nonfiction An injunction was issued by a U.S. District Court in Nevada under 26 U.S.C. § 7408 against Irwin Schiff and associates Cynthia Neun and Lawrence Cohen, against the sale of this book by those persons as the court found that the information it contains is fraudulent.[21]
Fight Club Chuck Palahniuk Novel Banned in China in 1999 for giving instructions on how to make various explosive devices.
Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus Mary W. Shelley Novel Banned in South Africa in 1955 for being indecent and obscene.
Fra Kristiania-Bohêmen Hans Jæger Novel Banned in Norway in 1885, immediately after its publishing.
The Fugitive (Perburuan) Pramoedya Ananta Toer Novel Banned in Indonesia for being too communistic and for other political reasons.[22]

[edit] G

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
The God of Small Things Arundhati Roy Novel Written in 1996, claimed to be portraying intereligion occasional sex scenes involving a Christian woman and low caste-Hindu servant. Ban overturned in India.[23]
The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck Novel Banned in many places in the US. In the region of California in which it was partially set, it was banned because it made the residents of this region look bad.[24]
The Gulag Archipelago Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Nonfiction Banned in the Soviet Union because it went against the image the Soviet Government tried to project of itself and its policies.[25]
Gulliver's Travels Jonathan Swift Novel Banned in Ireland [26]

[edit] H

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Howl Allen Ginsberg Poem Banned in the US for obscenity in March 1957, ban was repealed in October of the same year.[citation needed]

[edit] I

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Islam - A Concept of Political World Invasion R. V. Bhasin Political Ideology Banned in Maharashtra, India in 2007, after its publishing on grounds that it promotes communal disharmony between Hindus and Muslims.[27]

[edit] J

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
July's People Nadine Gordimer Novel Banned in South Africa.[citation needed]

[edit] K

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
The King Never Smiles Paul M. Handley Biography Banned in Thailand for its criticism of King Bhumibol Adulyadej.[28]

[edit] L

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Lady Chatterley's Lover D. H. Lawrence Novel Temporarily banned in the United States and UK for violation of obscenity laws.[citation needed]

Temporarily banned in Australia.[29]
Little Black Sambo Helen Bannerman Children's Book Banned in Japan (1988 - 2005) to quell "political threats to boycott Japanese cultural exports", although the pictures were not those of the original version.[30]
Lolita Vladmir Nabokov Novel French officials banned it for being "obscene," as did the United Kingdom, Argentina, New Zealand and South Africa. [31]
Lord of the Flies William Golding Novel Banned due to "rape" scene and the idea that humans are truly savage.
The Lottery Shirley Jackson Short Story Banned in South Africa during Apartheid; Jackson responded that the government of South Africa "understood the story".

[edit] M

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Mein Kampf Adolf Hitler Political ideology Banned in some European nations due to anti-Nazi laws. Was banned in the Soviet Union, but is legal in the Russian Federation
A Message to Man and Humanity Aleksandar Cvetković Banned in Yugoslavia by court order in 1967 for "false and wicked claims, and enemy propaganda that supports pro-Chinese politics"[14].
Mirror of the Polish Crown Sebastian Miczyński Anti-Semitic pamphlet Because this pamphlet published in 1618 was one of the causes of the anti-Jewish riots in Cracow, it was banned by Sigismund III Vasa[32]
The Mountain Wreath Petar II Petrović-Njegoš Drama in verse Banned in Bosnia schools by Carlos Westendorp.[33]

[edit] N

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Naked Lunch William S. Burroughs Novel Banned by Boston courts in 1962 for obscenity, but that decision was reversed in 1966 by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.[34]
New Class Milovan Đilas Banned in Yugoslavia by court order in 1957; author convicted for enemy propaganda to seven years in prison, prolonged to 13 years in 1962[14].
The Nickel-Plated-Feet Gang During the Occupation Louis Forton comic book Banned in Yugoslavia by court order in 1945[2].
Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell Novel Banned by the Soviet Union in 1950, as Stalin (correctly) believed that it was a satire based on his leadership, it was nearly banned by USA and UK in the early 1960s during the Cuban Missile Crisis. It was not until 1990 that the USSR legalised the book and it was re-released after editing.
Notre ami le roi Gilles Perrault Biography of Hassan II of Morocco Banned in Morocco. This book is a biography of King Hassan and examines cases of torture, killing and political imprisonment said to have been carried out by the Moroccan Government.[35]
Not Without My Daughter Betty Mahmoody Novel Banned in Iran. It is a real life story of an American citizen's escape along with her daughter from the clutches of her husband in Iran. It created furor in Iran for showing the general conditions there in bad light as well as for being critical of Islamic customs.
Nine Hours To Rama Stanley Wolpert Banned in India. It exposes persons responsible for security lapses that led to Mahatma Gandhi's assassination.

[edit] O

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
On Fierce Wound - Fierce Herb Ratko Zakić Withdrawn from sales and destroyed after the decision of the Municipal Committee of the League of Communists of Kraljevo in Kraljevo, Yugoslavia in 1967[14].
On the Origins and Perpetual Use of the Legislative Powers of the Apostolic Kings of Hungary in Matters Ecclesiastical. Adam F. Kollár Legal-political Banned by the Vatican for arguments against the political role of the Roman Catholic Church.[36] Original title: De Originibus et Usu perpetuo.
One Day of Life Manlio Argueta Novel Banned by El Salvador for its portrayal of human rights violations.[37]

[edit] P

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
The Peaceful Pill Handbook Philip Nitschke and Fiona Stewart Instructional manual on euthanasia Initially banned in New Zealand by Office of Film & Literature Classification since it was deemed to be objectionable.[38] In May 2008 it was allowed for sale if sealed and an indication of the censorship classification was displayed. The book remains banned outright in Australia. A digital edition is available from Peacefulpill.com [8][39]
Polyester Prince - Rise of Dhirubhai Ambani Hamish MacDonald Biography Banned in India. Exposes unholy nexus between Dhirubhai Ambani - A leading Indian industrialist and the Indian Government. Contains details on how he managed to control and subjugate the press, bring down a Central Government and bribed Politicians to obtain legislations in his favour. Ban in India believed to be due to proximity of Mukesh Ambani to the present Government.

[edit] Q

Title Author Type of Literature Reason

[edit] R

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Rangila Rasul Pt. Chamupati Religious Currently banned in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.[40]
Rights of Man Thomas Paine Political Banned in the UK and author charged with treason for supporting the French Revolution.[13] Banned in Tsarist Russia after the Decembrist revolt.[41]

[edit] S

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
The Satanic Verses Salman Rushdie Novel Banned in Bangladesh, India, Singapore,[42] and Iran for blasphemy.[43]
Snorri the Seal Frithjof Sælen Fable Satirical book banned during the German occupation of Norway.[44]
Soft Target: How the Indian Intelligence Service Penetrated Canada Zuhair Kashmeri & Brian McAndrew Investigative Journalism Banned in India.[45]
The Sorrows of Young Werther Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Novel Banned in several European countries because of the encouragement of suicidal deaths it showed in the public. [46][citation needed]
The Song of the Red Ruby Agnar Mykle Novel Banned in Norway in 1957 for its explicit sexual content. The ban was lifted by the Supreme Court in 1958.
Spycatcher Peter Wright Autobiography Banned in UK 1985-1988 for revealing secrets. Wright was a former MI5 intelligence officer and his book was banned before it was even published in 1987.[47][48]
Storytellers II Boško Novaković story collection Withdrawn from print in in Yugoslavia in 1964 because it contained stories by Dragiša Vasić[14].
Suicide mode d'emploi Claude Guillon Essay This book, reviewing all the accessible recipes for comitting suicide, was cause of a great scandal in France in the 70' and the subject of a law edicted in the french parliament which forbids not only this book to be sold in France but any medium giving tips or recipes on the way to kill oneself.

[edit] T

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Tropic of Cancer Henry Miller Novel (fictionalized memoir) Banned in the US in the 1930s until the early 1960s, seized by US customs for sexually explicit content and vulgarity. The rest of Miller's work was also banned by the United States.[50] Also banned in South Africa until the late 1980s.[citation needed]
The Turner Diaries William Luther Pierce Novel Banned in Germany for its Nazi ideology theme and Pierce leadership in the National Alliance. Blamed for a number of crimes allegedly inspired by the novel.[51]

[edit] U

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Ulysses James Joyce Novel Challenged and temporarily banned in the US for its sexual content. Ban overturned in United States v. One Book Called Ulysses.[citation needed]
Uncle Tom's Cabin Harriet Beecher Stowe Novel Banned in the Southern States due to its anti-slavery content, and Tsarist Russia since the government expected the people to see similarities between treatment of slaves in the US and the treatment of the Russian serfs.[52][verification needed]
United States-Vietnam Relations: 1945-1967 Robert McNamara and the United States Department of Defense Government Study President Nixon attempted to suspend publication of classified information. See: New York Times Co. v. United States[citation needed]
Uten en tråd Jens Bjørneboe Novel Published in 1966, banned in Norway for its explicit sexual content. The ban was later lifted.
Unarmed Victory Bertrand Russell Banned in India. Contains unflattering details of the 1962 Sino-India War.

[edit] V

Title Author Type of Literature Reason

[edit] W

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Watershed Čeda Vuković Self-banned by the publisher Nolit in Yugoslavia in 1968[14].
The Wealth of Nations Adam Smith Economic treatise Banned in communist nations[citation needed] for its capitalist content.
The Well of Loneliness Radclyffe Hall Novel Banned in the UK in 1928 for its lesbian theme, republished in 1949.[53]

[edit] X

Title Author Type of Literature Reason

[edit] Y

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Year 501: The Conquest Continues Noam Chomsky Politics Banned for distribution in South Korean military as one of 23 books banned from Aug 1st 2008.

[54]

[edit] Z

Title Author Type of Literature Reason
Zhuan Falun Li Hongzhi Spiritual Banned in China as part of the persecution of Falun Gong, which began in 1999.[55]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Skold, Walter. "Ray Bradbury Condemns Cuban Book Burning; 'Fahrenheit 451' Author Takes Stance While U.S. Librarians Ignore Counterparts". WorldNetDaily. http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=45050. Retrieved on 10 Jan 2009. "Among some of the many thousands of materials burned or destroyed by the Cuban Department of Interior were books on the United States Constitution, Martin Luther King, Jr., journalism manuals, a book called 'Fidel's Secret Wars,' and in one case, even a book by José Martí, the Cuban hero of independence beloved by most Cubans and often quoted by Castro." 
  2. ^ a b Arsić Ivkov, Marinko (2002-06-23). "Krivična estetika (32)" (in Serbian). Dnevnik (Novi Sad). http://www.dnevnik.rs/arhiva/23-06-2002/Strane/feljton.htm. Retrieved on April 25, 2009. 
  3. ^ [1]
  4. ^ a b Grannis, Chandler B.; Haight, Anne (Lyon) (1978). Banned books, 387 B. C. to 1978 A. D. New York: R. R. Bowker. pp. 80. ISBN 0-8352-1078-2. 
  5. ^ http://www.chowk.com/articles/10111
  6. ^ Karolides et al., p. 13-16
  7. ^ Karolides et al., p. 16-20
  8. ^ Noble, William (1990). Bookbanning in America: Who Bans Books? - And Why. Middlebury, VT: Paul S. Eriksson. pp. 6–8. ISBN 0-8397-1080-1. 
  9. ^ Military expands book blacklist
  10. ^ Military expands book blacklist
  11. ^ Forbidden library
  12. ^ Karolides et al., p. 29-32
  13. ^ a b "Banned Books Online". http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/banned-books.html. 
  14. ^ a b c d e f g Arsić Ivkov, Marinko (2002-06-24). "Krivična estetika (33)" (in Serbian). Dnevnik (Novi Sad). http://www.dnevnik.rs/arhiva/24-06-2002/Strane/feljton.htm. Retrieved on April 25, 2009. 
  15. ^ [2]
  16. ^ [3]
  17. ^ [4]
  18. ^ Karolides et al., p. 40-45
  19. ^ CBC's The Current the whole show blow by blow.
  20. ^ Karolides et al., p. 45-50
  21. ^ See also footnote 1, United States v. Schiff, 2008-1 U.S. Tax Cas. (CCH) paragr. 50,111 (9th Cir. 2007), citing United States v. Schiff, 379 F.3d 621, 630 (9th Cir. 2004), regarding the Court's finding that the book The Federal Mafia: How the Government Illegally Imposes and Unlawfully Collects Income Taxes constituted "fraudulent commercial speech."
  22. ^ Karolides et al., p. 50-57
  23. ^ "Top 10 "Obscene" Literary Classics". http://civilliberty.about.com/od/freespeech/tp/obscenenovels.htm. 
  24. ^ Karolides et al., p 57-71
  25. ^ Karolides et al., p 71-78
  26. ^ http://title.forbiddenlibrary.com/
  27. ^ [5]
  28. ^ Warrick-Alexander, James (February 6, 2006). Thailand Bars Univ. Website. Yale Daily News.
  29. ^ Cleland, John; Rembar, Charles; Miller, Henry (1986). The end of obscenity: the trials of Lady Chatterley, Tropic of cancer, and Fanny Hill. San Francisco: Harper & Row. ISBN 0-06-097061-8. 
  30. ^ "Banned Books". undated. http://www.sanftleben.com/Banned%20Books/collection7.html. Retrieved on 2008-09-06. 
  31. ^ http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1842832_1842838_1845288,00.html
  32. ^ Ringelblum, Emanuel; Joseph Kermish, Shmuel Krakowski. Polish-Jewish Relations During the Second World War. Northwestern University Press. pp. 190. ISBN 0810109638. 
  33. ^ "New World Order's Inquisition in Bosnia". http://www.truthinmedia.org/TruthinMedia/Bulletins/tim98-7-1.html. 
  34. ^ http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/03/01/features/beats.php
  35. ^ Notre ami le roi par Gilles Perrault
  36. ^ Andor Csizmadia, Adam Franz Kollár und die ungarische rechtshistorische Forschung. 1982.
  37. ^ Ferris, Geoff (February 2002). "One Day of Life". Western Michigan University. http://www.wmich.edu/dialogues/texts/onedayoflife.html. Retrieved on December 12, 2008. 
  38. ^ Office of Film & Literature Classification - "The Peaceful Pill Handbook banned"
  39. ^ http://www.censorship.govt.nz/pdfword/peaceful%20pill%20s38.pdf Office of Film & Literature Classification
  40. ^ Self and Sovereignty: Individual and Community in South Asian Islam Since 1850 by Ayesha Jalal
  41. ^ [6]
  42. ^ "Singapore will not Allow Publication of Prophet Cartoons". Bloomberg.com. 2006-02-10. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000080&sid=a0i6xbGIysFQ&refer=asia. Retrieved on 2007-06-14. [dead link]
  43. ^ [7]
  44. ^ Skarstein, Jakob. "Frithjof Sælen". in Helle, Knut (in Norwegian). Norsk biografisk leksikon. Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget. http://www.snl.no/.nbl_biografi/Frithjof_S%C3%A6len/utdypning. Retrieved on 4 July 2009. 
  45. ^ "Amazon Soft Target Book listing". http://www.amazon.com/Soft-Target-Intelligence-Service-Penetrated/dp/1550289047. Retrieved on 2007-12-19. 
  46. ^ [Quirkology: The science of everyday lifes]
  47. ^ Zuckerman, Laurence (1987-08-17). "How Not to Silence a Spy". Time. Time Warner. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,965233,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-01-20. 
  48. ^ 1987: Ban lifted on MI5 man's memoirs
  49. ^ "Edict Against Arius". 333. http://faculty.wlc.edu/thompson/fourth-century/urkunden/trans33.htm. 
  50. ^ From Henry Miller to Howard Stern, by Patti Davis, Newsweek, March, 2004
  51. ^ "'Turner Diaries' introduced in McVeigh trial". http://www.cnn.com/US/9704/28/okc/. 
  52. ^ "Stowe Debate". http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3709/is_199610/ai_n8740719. 
  53. ^ Smith, David (2005-01-02). "Lesbian novel was 'danger to nation'". The Observer. http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1382051,00.html. Retrieved on 2006-10-09. 
  54. ^ Military expands book blacklist
  55. ^ Why is Falun Gong Banned?, New Statesman, 19 August, 2008.

[edit] External links

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