Two more books have been added to Utah's public school list of banned books, including a sequel to George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones series. Martin has sold over 100 million copies of his A Song of Ice and Fire series, which inspired the hit HBO show Game of Thrones, but Utah public school students will now find a gap in the series within their school libraries. The second book in the series, A Clash of Kings, has been removed from shelves, alongside sexual assault survivor Jaycee Dugard's memoir, A Stolen Life.
How the Ban Works
A Clash of Kings was banned on Monday after three school districts—Alpine, Davis, and Jordan—removed it, triggering a statewide ban. State law mandates that any sensitive material be removed statewide if three school districts report its contents. The books were flagged as containing 'objective sensitive materials,' including explicit sexual acts, according to KUTV.
Growing List of Banned Books
The two new additions bring the total number of banned books in Utah public schools to 34. Other restricted titles include Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, John Green's Looking for Alaska, Sarah J. Maas' A Court of Thorns and Roses series, and Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye. Fifteen books have been added to the statewide ban since the start of 2026—nearly double the number added in the last two years combined. Of the 34 books, 33 were first banned in the Davis School District, according to KUTV. The most prolific districts for bans include Davis, Washington, and Jordan.
Authors' Reactions
Although Martin has not commented on the most recent ban, he made his stance clear in 2012. 'There's nothing I hate more than banning books,' he wrote on his blog. 'Free speech is one of the cornerstones of our democracy, yet somehow it is always under attack.' He added, 'The world is full of people who think they know better, and want to tell you what you should read, what you should write, what you should see. Christian fundamentalists, Muslim extremists, the right, the left… Everybody seems to have a book or two they want banned, an idea or two they don’t want expressed. Well, I say it’s spinach, and I say the hell with them.' Dugard has not publicly commented on the ban.
Criticism of the Law
State Representative John Arthur, a former Utah Teacher of the Year, criticized the law. 'It’s giving an outsized amount of power to a really small number of districts that are making decisions on behalf of all of us,' he said. He believes school libraries should remain local. 'Different communities carry different values, or at least they value literature in different ways.' Statewide bans also limit students' access to books, which worries the Democrat, who noted that school libraries are sometimes the only source of literature for children.
Public Reaction
The ban sparked online debate, with most users disagreeing with Martin. One X user wrote, 'Stop cosplaying oppression. Restricting adult material from children at a school library is not banning a book.' Another added, 'I'm not sure about all the books, but most have descriptive scenes of children being SA'd. I can understand why these would not be suitable for a school library.' Others argued the books are still available outside school libraries: 'Every single one of those books can be purchased in Utah at any time.' Some said the materials aren't truly banned, just requiring parental permission.
Davina Sauthoff, the Utah DOE's library media specialist, explained that the banning process starts locally and can be filed by parents, teachers, or community members. 'Once a book has been challenged and gone through the entire process at the LEA level, the law requires that districts and charter schools report any sensitive materials challenged to the state Board of Education,' she told KUTV. Her LinkedIn page reads, 'Better to lose a library book than a reader!'
