SLJ staff

The American Library Association issued a strong statement in response to the actions of the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights, saying, in part: "In their cruel and headlong effort to terminate protections from discrimination for LGBTQIA+ students and students of color, the Department of Education advances the demonstrably false claim that book bans are not real. Book bans are real."

SLJ is following the award announcements on children's literature's biggest day. This story will be updated with the winners throughout the ceremony.

PEN America and EveryLibrary respond to the action taken by the Trump administration, which called the book bans "a hoax" and also voided a resolution agreement with Forsyth County (GA) Public Schools.

The legendary children's author and illustrator, political cartoonist, and screenwriter Jules Feiffer has died at age 95, leaving a legacy of work that includes his illustrations for The Phantom Tollbooth and much more.

With the loss of protected area status for sensitive locations, immigration enforcement officers can now take action in schools, churches, and other sites. 

The Supreme Court will hear the case of Maryland parents who want their kids to be able to leave the classroom when materials with LGBTQIA+ characters are used by educators, an Idaho public library system creates "adult only" room and ends the ability for children to access other branches in the system, and more in censorship news.

These books are the best of the Rise committee's selection of  "well-written and well-illustrated books with significant feminist content for young readers."

An attempt to add Angel of Greenwood to the high school language arts curriculum was rejected by the Pine-Richland School Board, Florida's censorship attempts move to public libraries, and more in censorship news.

It's never a bad time to pull out a good book for a little inspiration.