For our 3rd Annual Banned Books Discussion & Celebration of the Right to Read, held on Sunday, September 28, 2025, we welcomed Tayler Simon from Liberation is Lit to talk to us about her work and book bans in South Carolina. Then members shared the banned books they read, listed below. Some members also posed for “Caught Reading Banned Books Mug Shots” which will be used for a social media campaign during Banned Books Week (Oct 5-11).
Banned Books Selections:
Richard C: Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe, All Boys Aren’t Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto by George M. Johnson, and This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson
Chuck H: The Last White Man: A Novel by Mohsin Hamid
Ann H: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
John & Barb C: Hansel and Gretel by Stephen King with art by Maurice Sendak
Sharon F: Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo – Boxers by Dav Pilkey
Herb S: Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Diane B: The House in the Cerulean Sea and Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune
Susie A: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Greg W: Lord of the Flies by William Golding and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Alex R: Beloved by Toni Morrison
Jeff Lovins: Tricks by Ellen Hopkins
Madelyne A: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Tucker L: Let’s Talk About It: The Teen’s Guide to Sex, Relationships, and Being a Human (A Graphic Novel) by Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan
Carolyn S: Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
Mug Shots:
Click on an image to see the full mug shot and book.
For our September book club meeting we are having our 3rd Annual Banned Books Discussion and Celebration.
Each participant will choose their own banned book to read, then report on the book, sharing why it was banned, and anything they would like to share about the book.
If you would like some suggestions for banned books, check out Pen America’s list of the most banned books of 2025 and the many resources about banned books on their website. You can also see the list of what SHL participants shared in 2024 and in 2023. Feel free to post the banned book you have chosen in the comments below.
We also invite people to come early (2:30) to pose for a mug shot with your banned book for a social media campaign for Banned Books Week.
The meeting will be held at 3 pm on Sunday, September 28, 2025 in Meeting Room B of the Main Public Library downtown (68 Calhoun St, Charleston, SC). Metered street parking is free on Sundays, and there is parking available in the garage under the library (garage closes at 5).
After the meeting we’ll go out for food and further conversation.
Thanks to the generosity of our donors, SHL has funds available to ensure everyone feels welcome and able to participate. If you would like to participate in dining with us after book club but the cost presents a challenge, please email us at shl@lowcountryhumanists.org, and we can discreetly arrange to cover your costs.