‘The Knife and the Butterfly’, by veteran member of the Velshi Banned Book Club Ashley Hope Pérez, is a salient reminder of just how much a novel can create and foster empathy. “The Knife and the Butterfly” tells the story of two teenagers, members of rival gangs, and the single act of violence that connects them forever. Pérez says, “...literature is always working to support readers in encountering and navigating the whole range of human experiences.”

Equal parts a meditation on young adulthood, a tribute to the power of friendship, and an examination of what it means to belong as an immigrant in America, “All My Rage” by Sabaa Tahir is proof we all need to be listening to what teenagers and young adults have to say. 

Everything in the world M.T. Anderson created in his novel “Feed” is informed by the ‘feed’, a commercial brain implant that allows constant access to the internet, including a relentless stream of advertisements. When a hacker with little interest in the feed enters our young protagonist’s life, though, he is confronted with the realities of his existence: the perils of consumerism, his dangerous reliance on technology, the truth of his freewill, and just how endangered his critical thinking is. It is hard to believe that a novel so prescient, so relevant, was published in 2002.

A brand new documentary from director Raoul Peck and producer Alex Gibney is a timely film centered around the writings and warnings of author George Orwell. It warns the “newspeak” of authoritarian rule is very much present in the current day. Gibney joins Ali Velshi to discuss the importance of Orwell’s works – especially at this point in history. “As a man of the world, he saw patterns of abuses of power, and he realized that they repeated themselves over and over and over again, across borders and through time,” Gibney says. “That's what makes Orwell's writing so compelling, is those simple patterns that repeat themselves over and over and over again…It's a very bleak vision of the future.”

A new report released by PEN America outlines the disturbing new trend of book bans becoming normalized. The report tracked more than 6,800 instances of books being temporarily or permanently pulled from library shelves during the 2024-2025 school year. Author Stephen King tops the list with the most books banned. Critics warn that schools are “obeying in advance” pulling books from the shelves before it’s even demanded. 

Book bans have slowly become normalized in recent years and a new report from PEN America shows the alarming consequences. Under President Trump, the book ban movement has escalated with the federal government becoming a potent force for restricting book titles deemed to be controversial. PEN America President and author Jennifer Finney Boylan warns “this is not normal. This is not the way democracy is supposed to function… free people read books."

Author Arundhati Roy joins the Velshi Banned Book Club to discuss her Booker Prize-winning novel “The God of Small Things,” and to share her perspective on the subversive power of storytelling to shatter social and political boundaries. Though written in 1997, Roy’s exploration of these social rigidities–from Indian caste codes to societal taboos to familial responsibility–remains relevant as ever in the broader fight against literary censorship.

The influence of George Orwell’s “1984” continues to be relevant in today’s scary world. Any discussion of authoritarianism, surveillance, and the manipulation of truth invokes the dystopian landscape in Orwell’s novel. Reading “1984” is one of the first and most formative moments when American students are asked to consider government overreach and the fragility and malleability of their own minds. Veronica Roth, the author of another hugely influential dystopian series, “Divergent,” joins the Velshi Banned Book Club to discuss.

By reframing U.S. history by placing the realities of slavery at the center of it, Nikole Hannah-Jones’ landmark initiative “The 1619 Project” offers answers to questions of identity, belonging, and origin for Black Americans. But what about for Black children? Today’s Velshi Banned Book Club meeting will examine the children’s adaptation called “The 1619 Project: Born on the Water”. Lyrically written with beautiful illustrations, “Born on the Water” tells the story of a young girl who receives a family tree assignment in school. The rest, as they say, is history. Co-author Renée Watson & illustrator by Nikkolas Smith join the Velshi Banned Book Club.

There are few authors with as much influence as Stephen King. King’s writing, from imagery to phrases, is deeply entrenched in American culture: “It” and Pennywise cemented the killer clown, “Carrie” defined high school suffering, “The Shining” crystallized haunted hotels, “The Shawshank Redemption” epitomized jailbreak, and “Cujo” became shorthand at the dog park. What connects all of King’s work, from explorations of fairy tales to time travel, is hope.

There are few authors with as much influence as Stephen King. King’s writing, from imagery to phrases, is deeply entrenched in American culture: “It” and Pennywise cemented the killer clown, “Carrie” defined high school suffering, “The Shining” crystallized haunted hotels, “The Shawshank Redemption” epitomized jailbreak, and “Cujo” became shorthand at the dog park. What connects King’s work, from explorations of fairy tales to time travel, is hope.

Daphne Du Maurier's “Rebecca” is now 87 years old, it is an immediate best-seller, never once taken out of print, and one of the best examples of Gothic literature of all time. It has also inspired many writers and readers, including the singular, award-winning, and best-selling author Jennifer Egan. Egan read it for the first time at just 11 years old and, as she tells it, was so deeply enthralled with the novel that her mother asked her to please stop reading it. Years later, she wrote her own Gothic.

A deft exploration of identity, self-acceptance, and the power of first love, “Cemetery Boys” by Aiden Thomas is a masterclass in why fantasy isn’t just such a popular genre, but why it is used so often to explore complex topics. When exploring a nuanced and complicated topic like transgender identity and understanding, fantasy helps make it more tangible to readers. “We’re talking about heavy stuff,” says Thomas, “I’m always going to ease it a little bit with a little magic and mystery.”

Abdi Nazemian’s “Like a Love Story” is a poignant examination of what identity, individuality, community, death, and legacy look like when the stakes are at their highest. Specific in its setting and subject matter – dealing with AIDS and coming out in the 1980s– but universal in its depiction of the teenage experience. One of Time Magazine's 100 Best Young Adult books of All Time, the novel is now banned from all public schools in Utah and faces challenges across the country, despite sometimes – in 2025 –being the first time some students have heard about HIV/AIDS, says Nazemian. "Let's be more intentional about how we reach kids that are marginalized…Let’s ask more of ourselves.” There is sex in this book – discussions about how serious of a step it is, what the risks are, and the realities. There are curse words in this book -- slurs used by society to dehumanize LGBTQ+ people. And none of it gratuitous. "I want to focus on the best of history, not the worst,” says Nazemian – shifting the focus to “to the heroes.”

According to a sweeping new report from Every Library – an organizing platform that supports public and school libraries and librarians – just since January 2025, 133 bills have been introduced in 33 states that would negatively affect libraries, librarians, and access to literature. But across the country, including in red states, people are fighting back... and it is working. “The lawsuits are helping in a myriad of ways,” says NYT bestselling author (and most banned of 2024) George M. Johnson. "At first I thought they were trying to ban my story, but then I realized they never read my story…Our books are actually saving lives.” 

In “This Is My America” by Kim Johnson, our 17-year-old protagonist, Tracy, will stop at nothing until she clears her father and her brother’s name of crimes they did not commit. Interspersed with Tracy’s handwritten letters to Innocence X, a fictionalized Innocence Project, “This Is My America” is an approachable examination of equality, racism, and the prison industrial complex in this country. Johnson successfully and clearly articulates the urgent and bitter realities of injustice in a way that will resonate for all levels of readership, but especially for the young adult audience she has written for. 

Max Brooks’ seminal zombie thriller, “World War Z”, is set in an alternate 21st century world after a zombie apocalypse -- a pandemic that began in a small Chinese village -- infected and subsequently killed millions. Told through a series of interviews, all conducted by a fictional version of Brooks, there is very intentionally no hero. Each interview subject is a survivor of the apocalypse, each with a different role to play. While “World War Z” grapples with human shortsightedness, the power of fear, the fragility of modern life, the necessity of humanity in the face of chaos, at its core, it is a book about survival.