Gay novel
Geography Club number 2 banned book

Bested by only To Kill a Mockingbird, the popular gay-themed novel Geography Club has been named the second-most banned book by the American Booksellers Association.

Every year the association lists its Banned Books Book Sense Top Ten Picks. The group's list precedes Banned Books Week, which brings attention to issues of censorship in the United States and starts on September 24.

"People don't like to think that censorship is happening right now in America because the very act of censorship is so un-American," Geography Club author Brent Hartinger said in a statement. "But it is happening, and gay books are very frequently the ones being challenged."

Other books on the list included Judy Blume's Forever and Lois Lowry's The Giver. (The Advocate)