Clara Evans is horrified when she discovers her principal’s “prohibited media” hit list. The iconic books on the list have been pulled from the library and aren’t allowed anywhere on the school’s premises. Students caught with the contraband will be sternly punished.

Many of these stories have changed Clara’s life, so she’s not going to sit back and watch while her draconian principal abuses his power. She’s going to strike back.

Clara has just discovered that her private high school has banned 50 popular books from its library bookshelves, including four titles that were personally life-changing for her. Insulted and angry, she launches her own library, consisting exclusively of these banned books, from her locker.

I have to admit some disorientation during the first quarter or so of the book: the main character isn't given a first name until chapter 6, but by that time the anonymous protagonist already felt male to me. My misguided assumptions could have been avoided by having read the flap — whoops. I loved Clara's fortitude, bravery and willingness to fight back against her school's new absurd and draconian policies. The characters felt honest and genuine. On the other hand, the resolution felt a bit too sudden, all wrapped up neat and tidy in the blink of an eye. Weirdly, the event that the reader was expecting to serve as the book's climax happened offscreen. A good book and a valuable and inspiring message, though. Recommended. ( )

Books are everything to Clara. In fact, she's a finalist in a scholarship program because she started a little library program in Chattanooga. She volunteers at the school library. She runs a community YA book club. So when she finds out her prestigious private school has disappeared books in the past and has a new secret list of 50 items that are deemed "prohibited media", it shakes her. She starts an UnLib (underground library) that runs from her locker with these books taken from the library shelf.
While navigating school politics, questioning everything about her assumptions about people and her own beliefs & motivations, Clara's senior year turns into something BIG and something she'd never thought it would be.
The book also serves as a love letter to literature full of shout out to books, meaningful quotes, and stories about the way stories touch her and her classmates lives. ( )

As a lifelong reader, I thought I would love this book. I liked it but didn't love it. Books DO make a difference and have an impact. The main character, Carla was a book lover who volunteered in her school library. She was snarky, funny at times but the character development was weak of her and the supporting characters. The end was sappy and predictable. ( )

this is a love letter to books and all that they can mean and do for someone. it's a sternly worded letter to the parents and school boards that are restricting books and media, claiming they are protecting children, when really all they are doing is withholding that which could be a salve or a way out. it's a gentle note passed between classes, reminding students that these books exist for them when they need them.

this was sweet (perhaps a bit too sweet in retrospect, but i did enjoy it) and good, but not great. a lot of the dialogue didn't feel realistic, but i still liked this quite a bit. ( )