Banned Books: Who Gets to Decide What We Read?

Who gets to decide what belongs on your bookshelf?This week on Well Read and Unfiltered, we’re talking banned books, the freedom to read, and where parental guidance crosses into policing everyone else’s shelves. From "1984" and "The Handmaid’s Tale" to ACOTAR, we unpack the stories that spark controversy, the value of uncomfortable reads, and why representation matters.Expect strong opinions, a few reading confessions, and a debate about whether banning a book just makes us want to read it more.What banned or challenged book has left an impression on you? Tell us in the comments.BOOKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODEHarry Potter series — J. K. Rowling1984 — George OrwellFahrenheit 451 — Ray BradburyThe Handmaid’s Tale — Margaret AtwoodThe Hunger Games — Suzanne CollinsA Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) — Sarah J. MaasLolita — Vladimir NabokovThe Crucible — Arthur Miller (the film adaptation is mentioned)I Am Malala — Malala Yousafzai, with Christina Lamb (edition unspecified)Animal Farm — George OrwellThe Outsiders — S. E. HintonThe Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time — Mark HaddonThe Perks of Being a Wallflower — Stephen ChboskyTo Kill a Mockingbird — Harper LeeThe Buffalo Hunter Hunter — Stephen Graham JonesThe Love Hypothesis — Ali HazelwoodMein Kampf — Adolf HitlerThe Giver — Lois LowryPowerless — Lauren RobertsBeloved — Toni MorrisonBilly Budd, Sailor — Herman MelvilleThe Diary of a Young Girl — Anne FrankLooking for Alaska — John GreenThe Bluest Eye — Toni MorrisonDesert Sons — Mark KendrickVictorian Psycho — Virginia FeitoGoosebumps series — R. L. StineModel Home — Rivers SolomonBrave New World — Aldous HuxleyThe Color Purple — Alice WalkerSlaughterhouse-Five — Kurt Vonnegut