Dear Martin
by Nic Stone
24 jurisdictions · Banned 2018-2025 · Published
Dear Martin is Nic Stone's 2017 debut novel about a Black teenager who writes letters to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. while navigating racial profiling and a fatal police shooting, banned or restricted in 24+ U.S. jurisdictions.
Why it was banned
The book has been banned in Texas, Florida, and Tennessee districts often alongside The Hate U Give for similar cited reasons. Stone has been an active public advocate against the bans and has hosted banned-book events in districts that removed her work.
Cited reasons
- racial content
- profanity
- depiction of police violence
Primary states
Texas, Florida, Tennessee
Why it matters
Nic Stone's debut put a Black Ivy League-bound teenager at the center of a young adult novel about racial profiling. The book's structural device, letters to Martin Luther King Jr., asks what King's nonviolent philosophy means for a Black teenager facing daily harassment. It is one of the most-assigned young adult novels in American high schools.
Themes
- police violence
- racial profiling
- Martin Luther King Jr.
- young adult
Awards
- William C. Morris Award Finalist
Where to buy
The Ledger recommends Black-owned booksellers. Each stocks this title or can order it.
- MahoganyBooksNational Harbor, Maryland · Founded
Independent bookstore specializing in books written for, by, and about people of the African diaspora.
- Semicolon Bookstore and GalleryChicago, Illinois · Founded
Chicago's only Black woman-owned independent bookstore, with a mission to raise literacy rates among Chicago Public School students.
- Harriett's BookshopPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania · Founded
Named for Harriet Tubman, focusing on women authors, artists, and activists.
- Loyalty BookstoreWashington, D.C. · Founded
Black, queer, and woman-owned bookstore with locations in Washington, D.C. and Silver Spring, Maryland.
The Ledger may earn commission on affiliate links. All commissions route to Black-owned booksellers.
Related banned books
Books in the catalog that share themes with this one.
Documented by The Ledger. A record of what Black America built and what was taken.
Book cover via Open Library. Editorial use under fair use.