In a time when we can read “Fifty Shades of Grey” on the subway unabashed, the fact that books such as “Green Eggs and Ham” and “Where’s Waldo?” were at one time banned from schools is pretty crazy. They aren’t the only shockers that made the list. Here, in the midst of Banned Book Week, we round up some of our favorites.
“Green Eggs and Ham” by Dr. Suess
According to the book “Seuss Facts,” this classic was banned briefly in the 1990s because of supposed homosexual innuendos.
“Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck
This book is one of the most frequently banned books in the U.S. due to racial slurs, profanities, violence and the “absence of traditional values,” a claim made most recently in 2005 by Normal Community High School in Illinois.
“Where’s Waldo?” by Martin Handford
In the mid-1990’s, the first book of this series was still one of the most banned books in the country because of a beach scene that slightly shows a woman’s breasts, says the Banned Books Awareness organization.
“The Diary of Anne Frank”
In 2010, the book was banned in a Virginia due to its “sexual content and homosexual themes.” Several schools have also banned it because it’s a “real downer,” reports The Nation.
“The Giving Tree” by Shel Silverstein
In 1998 it was banned from a public library in Colorado because it was considered “sexist.”
“Charlotte’s Web” by E.B. White
In 2006, this book was banned in Kansas because “showing lower life forms with human abilities is sacrilegious and an insult of God.”
“The American Heritage Dictionary”
In Alaska, an Anchorage schoolboard banned this dictionary in 1987 for “objectionable” entries such as “bed,” “knocker” and “balls.”