That’s me, surrounded by some of the banned and challenged books that I’ve read. My library book club was meeting after school during Banned Books Week. We were taking photos of the students in front of a height chart to represent being booked for a crime. Each of them had a banned book or two that they’d read. Then they suggested I have a turn, so we gathered some of my favorite books.
Removing library books from the shelf for later review is essentially banning them, no matter what the censors say. My experience with book challenges and removal are here on my Substack “Be a Cactus.”.
I’ve moved to Substack for most of my posting, and I hope you will join me there. It’s a friendly place for writers and readers. I discuss libraries, books, and the craft of writing. There’s some great work going on there!
Victoria Waddle is a Pushcart Prize-nominated writer and has been included in Best Short Stories from The Saturday Evening Post Great American Fiction Contest. Her books include a collection of feminist short fiction, Acts of Contrition, and a chapbook on grief, The Mortality of Dogs and Humans. Her YA novel about a polygamist cult, Keep Sweet, launches in June 2025. Formerly the managing editor of the journal Inlandia: A Literary Journey and a teacher librarian, she contributes to the Southern California News Group column Literary Journeys. She discusses both writing and library book censorship on her Substack, “Be a Cactus.” Join her there for thoughts on defiant readers and writers as well as for weekly library censorship news.
School Library Lady 
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