Penguin Random House, Authors Sue Iowa Officials Over School Book Ban

Penguin Random House has filed a federal lawsuit seeking to block school book banning in Iowa, the latest effort by publishers, authors and teachers to counter the removal of works from school classrooms and libraries.

The legal action, filed Thursday in federal district court in the Southern District of Iowa, was prompted by a state law passed earlier this year that bans from school libraries or classrooms books that depict or describe sex acts. (Religious texts are exempt.) The law also bans books that address gender identity or sexual orientation for students in kindergarten through sixth grade.