Includes bibliographical references and index.

Requests for the removal, relocation, and restriction of books -- also known as challenges -- occur with some frequency in the United States. Book Banning in 21st Century America, based on fifteen contemporary book challenges cases in schools and public libraries across the United States, argues that understanding contemporary reading practices, especially interpretive strategies, is vital to understanding why people attempt to censor books in schools and public libraries. Focusing on the why of censorship, Knox posits that many censorship attempts are intimately tied to how one understands the practice of reading and its effects on character development and behavior.