Sign up now to receive a free Banned Books Week kit! Banned Books Week kits are sent annually to participating stores and include materials to decorate your store and educate customers about the freedom to read. 

This year, Banned Books Week will be held October 5–11.

As a proud member of the Banned Books Week Coalition, we are pleased to announce the theme for Banned Books Week 2025: “Censorship Is So 1984. Read for Your Rights.”

Current efforts to ban books and information held in schools, libraries, archives, and bookstores are a truth close to fiction — namely, the depiction of extreme censorship by an oppressive regime in George Orwell’s cautionary and prescient tale 1984. The Banned Books Week 2025 theme reminds us that the right to read belongs to all of us, that censorship has no place in contemporary society, and that we must defend our rights. Read more about the theme and Banned Books week on BookWeb, where you can also find shareable social media assets.

Kits will be included in the September Box mailing. If your store does not receive a September Box, the kit will be shipped separately. Supplies are limited and will be fulfilled on a first-come, first-served basis. If your bookstore has multiple branches, we ask that each branch fill out their own form. Sorry, online-only and international bookstores are not eligible to receive kits. 

The deadline to complete this form is June 15.

NOTE: ALL bookstores that want to receive a Banned Books Week kit MUST complete this form. Bookstores that signed up for a kit last year will NOT automatically receive a 2025 kit.

• April 21–25: Indie Bookstore Day Spirit Week
• Tuesday, April 22 at 3:00 pm ET: New Member Series: Intro to ABA Benefits
• Wednesday, April 23 at 1:00 pm ET: BIPOC Bookseller Forum*
• Wednesday, April 23 at 7:00 pm ET: Black Bookseller Forum*
• Thursday, April 24 at 1:00 pm ET: LGBTQIA2S+ Bookseller Forum*
• Saturday, April 26: Independent Bookstore Day
• Tuesday, April 29 at 3:00 pm ET: ABA Staff Office Hours
  

*Check the ABA events calendar tomorrow for registration links!

This year’s exclusive Indie Bookstore Day t-shirt and tote bag design was created by Adrian Tomine. A bestselling graphic novelist, screenwriter, and The New Yorker cover artist, Tomine is the cartoonist of Optic Nerve and the author of 11 books. 

Here, Tomine sat down with Indie Bookstore Day Program Director Courtney Wallace to discuss his work and this year’s exclusive design.

We want to see your Indie Bookstore Day displays!

Leading up to Indie Bookstore Day, we’ll be sharing store photos across social media.

Want to be included? Send photos of your store’s Indie Bookstore Day display to [email protected]!

Am*zon picked the wrong weekend to mess with indie bookstores!

Yesterday, Am*zon announced their annual book sale will take place April 23–28. These dates conveniently overlap with Independent Bookstore Day.

So let's make this year's Independent Bookstore Day bigger than ever!

It's not too late to plan something wild, invite your regulars, post that call-to-action Reel, turn your store into a celebration of everything they can’t do, and give your community a reason to walk in and never want to leave.

Indie Bookstore Day is more than a discount. It’s about discovery, connection and matching people with books they’ll actually love. 

Algorithms don’t throw parties. Indies do.

There are extra Indie Bookstore Day exclusive totes available! (These totes retail for $16.99.)

Contact your Ingram Rep to order them.

Free Expression Legislation

In Arkansas, with HB 1646, Don’t Say Gay just got worse. Any book that “concerns an individual’s sexuality” must be kept under literal lock and key in grades K-5, functionally banning LGBTQ+ children’s literature in the state.

In Colorado, SB 63, a bill that would proactively limit book bans in schools, has passed both chambers. Great news!

In Florida, HB 1539, a bill that would outlaw consideration of a work’s merit when deciding its “harmful to minors” status, is being heard in the House Education & Employment Committee tomorrow, Thursday, April 17. Go to ABFE’s Action Center for details on how to push back.

In North Carolina, HB 636, a bill that would ban all books containing any sex, regardless of intent or literary merit, has passed its House committee and may receive a vote in the full House today. We will keep you apprised of opportunities to make your voices heard on this bill.

In North Dakota, SB 2307, a bill that would see books banned in droves merely because they are challenged, is headed to the Governor for signature. Right to Read North Dakota has an action center to help you ask for a veto.

In New Hampshire, SB 33, a bill that would push the Granite State into the book ban circus, will have a hearing in the House Education Policy and Administration Committee on April 23 at 11:00 am. Reach out to ABFE for information on testifying or submitting comments.

Legal Status Report: Texas HB 900 and Arkansas Act 372

While there isn’t much news in our two ongoing cases against Texas HB 900 and Arkansas Act 372, both cases move forward. 

In Texas, we await a hearing on cross-motions for summary judgment in the district court, which will take place in August. 

In Arkansas, briefs will be filed in the coming months relating to the State’s appeal to the Eighth Circuit Appellate Court, which follows Judge Brooks granting a final injunction against Act 372 in the district court earlier this year. We will keep you updated of any significant occurrences.

Sign Up for VoterVoice

We can tell you when your action is needed on book ban-related legislation and more, but only if you sign up for our VoterVoice updates. 

We send updates targeted by state, so the information you receive will be current and relevant.