Ban This Book

By: Alan Gratz

Narrated by: Bahni Turpin

An inspiring tale of a fourth grader who fights back when her favorite book is banned from the school library - by starting her own illegal locker library.

It all started the day Amy Anne Ollinger tried to check out her favorite book in the whole world, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, from the school library. That's when Mrs. Jones, the librarian, told her the bad news: her favorite book was banned, all because a classmate's mom thought the book wasn't appropriate for kids to read.

Amy Anne decides to fight back by starting a secret banned books library out of her locker. Soon, she finds herself on the front line of an unexpected battle over book banning, censorship, and who has the right to decide what she and her fellow students can read.

Reminiscent of the classic novel Frindle by Andrew Clements for its inspiring message, Alan Gratz's Ban This Book is a love letter to the written word and its power to give kids a voice.

©2017 Alan Gratz (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Great Story

Bahni Turpin always does an excellent job of narrating any story I have heard her in. Cute plot, likeable characters.

Excellent.

I listened to this with my 4th grade son (the protagonist is also in 4th grade) and it was a delight for both of us.

Great Story!

I read this book because it is on the 18-19 EBOB list, and I work closely with those kiddos at my school. The story itself is one that I think a lot of children can relate to- especially those with siblings. The main character feels like she has no place of her own at home, and spends her afternoons at school in the library reading. When she finds out that her favorite book has been banned, she is crushed. During the story, this little girl finds her voice, and learns to stand up for herself. It has a lot of humor, and also teaches that you can't always judge a book by its cover!

Loved the narrator.

I don't understand why some people want to ban any book, and even THIS one!

Perfection

The narrator Bahni Turpin read with the integrity and voice this book deserves. My students couldn’t wait to read this book. It was a great introduction to the issues of censorship and First Amendment rights. It inspired multiple written responses and activities.