Every Wednesday morning at 8:00 a.m., a group of approximately thirteen Upper School students file into EC20 for the Banned Book Club. Over the next thirty minutes, these students will munch on various home-baked pastries and snacks as they vigorously and passionately dissect their current read. On this particular morning, students are sinking their proverbial teeth into George Orwell’s classic dystopian novel 1984. 

Following the Eaton fires at the beginning of 2025, the English Department decided to remove the newly added Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 from the English I curriculum in an effort to minimize harm to students impacted by the fires. 

Upper School English Teacher and Writing Center Co-Director Ms. Tarra Stevenson explained the decision to remove Fahrenheit 451. “As a department, we thought that it might be a bit too much in terms of attaching a grade to something that was so close to home and that would have so much possible trauma attached to it,” she said.

Ms. Stevenson then encouraged Upper School Writing Center Fellows to launch an optional organized reading of Fahrenheit 451. Nina K. ’26, and Spyglass staffers Frances B. ’27 and Rebecca L. ’27 stepped up to create and lead what is now known as the Banned Book Club.

Book club co-head Rebecca L. ’27 noted the importance of holding a special space for students. “We wanted to provide a space for those who did want to read [Fahrenheit 451], and also just have a place to discuss it, hear other people’s opinions, and also give their own input on the book,” she said.

Last year, Sophie S. ’28 joined the book club because she wanted to have the opportunity to read and discuss Fahrenheit 451 after it was removed from the curriculum.

Ms. Stevenson said, “Fahrenheit [451] is such an important book, because of all of the elements of censorship, because it has been banned and challenged in so many places, the idea came about to do just a banned books book club for the rest of the [year].”

When the 2025-26 school year began, the club heads decided to take what they had started and shift the club’s focus to banned books. Book club co-head Frances B. ‘27 noted, “In today’s world, banned books are really important, as the Banned Books [week] theme was ‘read for your rights,’ which we think is very true.”

For new ninth grader Morgan R., the book club has allowed her to meet new people and connect with other Upper School students who share her interests. “It seemed like a really cool way to read more books and meet new people,” she said.

Banned book club member Amelia W. ’29 appreciates the discussion aspect of the club and exploring banned literature. “It’s just really interesting to get to learn, to think about more deeply, like, why was this book banned? And also, to realize that there’s not really often a really super concrete answer,” said Amelia.

The American Library Association collects yearly data and statistics on book bans. In 2024, there were 2,452 titles that were challenged or banned in the United States. The books most challenged commonly surround race, history, gender identity, sexuality, and reproductive health. In the recent increase of censorship, the book club serves as a space for students to study and discuss these topics. 

This semester, the club read J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, and is currently reading George Orwell’s 1984. The club heads are open to any Upper School students showing up and making requests.

“It’s super important for people to be able to be exposed to those books,” said Book club co-head Nina K. ’26. “And we all felt that, especially like being in the Westridge Community, we’re super-progressive, and so it’s important to expose people to different perspectives, even if it can be challenging.”