Utah’s statewide book removal list hits 34 as two more titles are pulled

"A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin and "A Stolen Life: A Memoir" by Jaycee Dugard met Utah's statewide threshold for removal from public schools April 27, bringing the list to 34 titles. Photo: TownLift

Decisions in a few districts keep reshaping what students across the state can read.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT — Utah’s statewide school book removal list has grown to 34 titles, with the latest additions again showing how a small number of school districts can trigger removals across every public school in the state.

The newest additions to the Utah State Board of Education’s list are “A Stolen Life: A Memoir” by Jaycee Dugard and “A Clash of Kings” by George R.R. Martin, according to the USBE’s library media spreadsheet. Both titles met the statewide removal threshold on April 27.

Under Utah Code 53G-10-103, titles are placed on the statewide list after a final determination that they contain objective sensitive materials and after they meet the statewide threshold for removal. That threshold is met when a title has been removed by at least three school districts, or by at least two school districts and five charter schools.

“A Stolen Life: A Memoir” was removed in the Cache, Davis, and Granite school districts and was located in grades 9-12, according to the spreadsheet. “A Clash of Kings” was removed from the Alpine, Davis, and Jordan school districts and was used in grades 10-12.

The USBE Library Media page states that the statewide sensitive materials spreadsheet contains resources for school districts and charter schools implementing and reporting on sensitive materials under 53G-10-103 and R277-628. According to the state’s flow chart, once the threshold is met, USBE publishes the titles to be removed from student access on the USBE Library Media website and notifies local education agencies.

The removals apply to student access in Utah public schools. They do not remove the books from public libraries, bookstores, or private collections.

The latest additions continue a pattern TownLift has previously reported: Utah’s statewide book removal system is being driven largely by a small group of districts. Davis School District appears on nearly every statewide removal listed in the spreadsheet. Washington County, Jordan, Tooele, Alpine, Nebo, and Granite also appear repeatedly. No charter schools appear in the statewide removals.

The list has grown steadily in 2026. On Jan. 5, “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West,” “Nineteen Minutes,” and “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” met the threshold after removals in the Davis, Tooele, and Washington school districts.

On Feb. 13, “Bag of Bones” by Stephen King met the threshold after removals in the Davis, Granite, Jordan, and Tooele school districts.

Four more titles were added on March 2: “Breathless,” “The Carnival at Bray,” “The Handmaid’s Tale: The Graphic Novel,” and “Red Hood.” Each had been removed in the Davis, Granite, and Washington school districts.

John Green’s “Looking for Alaska” met the threshold on March 13 after removals in the Davis, Jordan, Tooele, and Washington school districts.

On April 17, four more books were added: “Life is Funny,” “The Haters,” “The Bluest Eye,” and “People Kill People.” The first three were removed in the Davis, Jordan, and Washington school districts. “People Kill People” was removed in Davis, Jordan, and Tooele.

The April 27 additions bring the list to 34 titles.

The structure of the law means decisions made in a few districts can determine what students may access in school libraries and classrooms statewide, including in districts that did not independently review or remove the title.

The law is also being challenged in federal court. In January, Utah News Dispatch reported that authors Elana K. Arnold, Ellen Hopkins, and Amy Reed, the Kurt Vonnegut estate, and two Utah high school students sued the state, arguing the law violates constitutional protections.

As the list grows, the central issue is no longer only which books are being removed. It is also who decides what Utah students can access in school: individual school communities, district review committees, or the state, once a small number of districts have reached the legal threshold.