Frequently Banned and Challenged Books on Audio

The 1619 Project

A New Origin Story

By: Caitlin Roper, Ilena Silverman & Jake Silverstein
Narrated by: Nikole Hannah-Jones & Full Cast
Length: 18 hours 56 minutes

“This new landmark work of U.S. history, criticism, and art is forged of 18 essays that consider the relevance of slavery to contemporary America through the prism of such subjects as capitalism, music, and healthcare and poems and fiction that focus on key moments in the oppression, resistance, and liberation of Black people in America. Riveting... Read more

Melissa (previously published as GEORGE)

By: Alex Gino
Narrated by: Jamie Clayton
Length: 3 hours 16 minutes

“This book, which the author is now calling Melissa’s Story, is tender and wholesome—about a young transgender girl who wants to play Charlotte in her 4th grade production of Charlotte’s Web. Read more

Beloved

By: Toni Morrison
Narrated by: Jane Santos
Length: 11 hours 52 minutes

“Once again Toni Morrison writes in a way that just reaches deep into my soul. Jazz is another favorite of mine, and has that same beautiful, distilled pain in it. There is a sense of mothering one’s children in every aspect of the book. It is clear she is writing to redefine how the African American experience fits into the American experience.... Read more

This Book Is Gay

By: Juno Dawson
Narrated by: Christopher Solimene
Length: 6 hours 47 minutes

Lesbian. Bisexual. Queer. Transgender. Straight. Curious. This book is for everyone, regardless of gender or sexual preference. This book is for anyone who's ever dared to wonder. This book is for you.



There's a long-running joke that, after "coming out," a lesbian, gay guy, bisexual, or trans person should receive a membership card and... Read more

All Boys Aren't Blue

A Memoir-Manifesto

By: George M. Johnson
Narrated by: George M. Johnson
Length: 5 hours 11 minutes

“After listening to this book, I was outraged to learn how widely banned it is across the country - This story needs to be told and shared. Read more

Felix Ever After

By: Kacen Callender
Narrated by: Logan Rozos
Length: 8 hours 23 minutes

“Captivating own voices story about finding your identity and love. Read more

The Hate U Give

By: Angie Thomas
Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
Length: 11 hours 50 minutes

“This bestselling, powerful young adult novel about social justice and one teen girl's effort to fight for what is right, will leave you breathless. The narration by Bahni Turpin is hands down the best I've ever heard. This is such an important book it should be required reading for life in general. Or listening. Definitely listening. Read more

Their Eyes Were Watching God

By: Zora Neale Hurston
Narrated by: Ruby Dee
Length: 6 hours 44 minutes

“This book is a masterpiece. Zora Neale Hurston explores stages in a woman’s life so powerfully. Ruby Dee’s audiobook narration is the best audiobook narration I’ve ever heard. She expresses so much emotion and personality. She brings the characters to life and she savors every perfectly chosen word of the text. Read more

The Bell Jar

By: Sylvia Plath
Narrated by: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Length: 7 hours 24 minutes

“You cannot deny that Sylvia Plath is one of the greatest writers to have lived. Ester Greenwood is the characterization of the writer. The fact that this book leaves us hanging at the end is very unsettling. Here is a woman who is less mentally/emotionally ill and more spiraling mentally because she is disenfranchised as a woman - this... Read more

Bridge to Terabithia

By: Katherine Paterson
Narrated by: Robert Sean Leonard
Length: 3 hours 30 minutes

This beloved Newbery Medal-winning novel by bestselling author Katherine Paterson is a modern classic of friendship and loss.Jess Aarons has been practicing all summer so he can be the fastest runner in the fifth grade. And he almost is, until the new girl in school, Leslie Burke, outpaces him. The two become fast friends and spend most days in... Read more

To Kill a Mockingbird

By: Harper Lee
Narrated by: Sissy Spacek
Length: 12 hours 17 minutes

Look for The Land of Sweet Forever, a posthumous collection of newly discovered short stories and previously published essays and magazine pieces by Harper Lee, coming October 21, 2025.Voted America's Best-Loved Novel in PBS's The Great American ReadHarper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning masterwork of honor and injustice in the deep South—and the... Read more

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

By: Becky Albertalli
Narrated by: Michael Crouch
Length: 6 hours 45 minutes

“Like an old familiar smell, or the first cool day in fall, this book yanks you right back into high school in all the best ways. Simon and his friends are charming, smart, and genuinely funny. Don’t be surprised if by the end of the book you find yourself pining once again for that crazy time in life where it feels like you age a decade in a... Read more

Hello, Universe

By: Erin Entrada Kelly
Narrated by: Ramon de Ocampo & Amielynn Abellera
Length: 5 hours 17 minutes

Winner of the Newbery Medal“A charming, intriguingly plotted novel.” —Washington PostAcclaimed and award-winning author Erin Entrada Kelly’s Hello, Universe is a funny and poignant neighborhood story about unexpected friendships.Told from four intertwining points of view—two boys and two girls—the novel celebrates bravery, being different, and... Read more

They Both Die at the End

They Both Die at the End Series: Book #1

By: Adam Silvera
Narrated by: Michael Crouch, Robbie Daymond & Bahni Turpin
Length: 8 hours 29 minutes

“Embarking on this literary journey, you brace yourself for the emotional impact, and yet, the characters draw you in, making you invest in their stories. Despite the anticipated heartache, there's an inexplicable connection that forms, prompting reflection on what one would do if faced with the certainty of the end. Post-reading, a lingering... Read more

The Poet X

By: Elizabeth Acevedo
Narrated by: Elizabeth Acevedo
Length: 3 hours 30 minutes

“Acevedo's book is full of raw emotion, poetic descriptions, and gut-wrenching plot points. It explores themes of religious identity, female rage, and embracing a creative lifestyle in the immigrant Latinx community. READ it. Read IT. READ IT! NOW. Stop reading this and go read this book! Read more

The Black Flamingo

By: Dean Atta
Narrated by: Dean Atta
Length: 3 hours 40 minutes

“Michael is a mixed-race gay teen growing up in London who goes to college and can't find a place to fit in, until he discovers The Drag Society. This story, told in poetry, is full of stunning language and the joy of finding your place in the world. Read more

Where the Wild Things Are

A Caldecott Award Winner

By: Maurice Sendak
Narrated by: Michelle Obama
Length: 4 minutes

Let the wild rumpus start—Where the Wild Things Are is turning sixty with this all-new digital audio edition narrated by Michelle Obama!Maurice Sendak's Caldecott Medal–winning picture book has become one of the most highly acclaimed and best-loved children's books of all time. This iconic story of Max and his journey to visit the Wild Things... Read more

The Sun Also Rises

By: Ernest Hemingway
Narrated by: William Hurt
Length: 8 hours 4 minutes

2007 Audie Award Finalist for Classics

Originally published in 1926, The Sun Also Rises is Ernest Hemingway’s first novel and a classic example of his spare but powerful writing style.​

A poignant look at the disillusionment and angst of the post-World War I generation, the novel introduces two of Hemingway’s most unforgettable characters: Jake... Read more

Lobizona

A Novel

Wolves of No World: Book #1

By: Romina Garber
Narrated by: Sol Madariaga
Length: 12 hours 33 minutes

“In LABIZONA, Romina Garber weaves Argentinian folklore with the ache to belong somewhere completely. She plays with identity, gender, and family to create a magical landscape in which an entire culture must recognize that they have been complicit in a societal structure that hurts anyone who does not fit in. Manuela is undocumented in both... Read more

Ace of Spades

By: Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
Narrated by: Jeanette Illidge & Tapiwa Mugweni
Length: 13 hours 48 minutes

“I thoroughly enjoyed this 'Gossip Girl meets Get Out' social justice horror novel with its elite high school drama and an anonymous texter (that blasts the whole school) taking the popular and academically ambitious down a notch EXCEPT this tipster appears to be targeting a select few with far more nefarious intentions than GG ever had. Fans of... Read more