Other Discussions The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas Welcome to our Banned Books book club! This go round we’ve selected three books that have been banned or challenged for various reasons. Each of our books – All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson, The 1619 Project edited by Nikole Hannah-Jones, and The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas – have their own Discussion Posts. Even if you weren’t […]
The Banned Books #CannonBookClub We’re With The Banned
Cannon Book Club is live! Join in any or all of our three discussion posts: The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas It is a little hard to believe, but we are a little over three weeks away from our Banned Books #CannonBookClub. (Where has this summer gone?) In honor of Banned Books Week’s 40th birthday we are reading All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson, The 1619 […]
“It’s time for the world to let queer black boys unpack their shit.”
All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson
When we had our book club vote for September, I was secretly hoping that All Boys Aren’t Blue would be one of the ones we chose. I was flabbergasted that in November of last year the memoir had a criminal report filed with the Flagler County Sheriff’s office by a member of the Flagler County School Board arguing that the book’s inclusion in three district school libraries violated state obscenity laws because it contained sexually graphic material. It has also been removed from school libraries […]
More Memoir-Manifestos, please!
All Boys Aren't Blue by George Matthew Johnson
CBR Bingo – Bodies, because this book is all about how the author came to accept his identity – his life in his queer, Black body – it’s a letter of acceptance for everyone who might need it, which includes all of us. I loved this memoir – this vulnerable, beating heart of a book – which explores the life of a young, queer Black man growing up in New Jersey. Johnson describes how he came to accept himself even as he struggles with two […]
#CannonBookClub September Book Club Announcement
Our September Book Club will be discussing Banned or Challenged Books on September 16-17, just ahead of Banned Book Week (September 18-24, 2022). Forty years ago, Banned Book Week began as a response to a sudden surge in book challenges in 1982. With the current push to limit access to books dealing with sexuality, gender identity, and race, we asked you what you wanted to read; and we’ve tallied up the votes for the top three. The books selected for our discussion come from a […]


