Are you book shopping for a bookworm who seems to have every popular book you can think of? Are you in Akron looking for unique book finds?  

Banned Books Box sells banned or challenged literature to fight against the ongoing issue of censorship inside the U.S. 

Books in the U.S. get banned based on complaints about content. Book banning in schools and prisons has risen exponentially. During the 2023-2024 school year, PEN America recorded 10,046 instances of book bans. 

Ariel Hakim founded Banned Books Box in 2021, after hearing about increasing instances of book banning in schools. Hakim experienced a major life shift after adopting two children, so she left her job at the library and started Banned Books Box from her home. 

“These people [who are banning books] have not had the experience of reading a book and thinking wow somebody gets me,” Hakim said. 

Hakim shared that the recent election has increased her feeling that what she is doing is necessary and important.  

Some challenges Hakim faced when starting a business from scratch were suddenly needed to become a jack of all trades. For instance, she had little experience starting social media, designing a website, or setting up wholesale accounts with publishers.  

Despite these challenges, Hakim was fueled by her desire for others to see themselves in books. 

“I’m doing a service of curating banned books for people who will read them and pass them on,” Hakim said. “It’s just part of doing that good in the world.” 

Before this business, Hakim ventured down many different career paths ranging from a news reporter to a church sectary and a movie theater janitor in Tucson, Arizona.  

“I floated around a lot in my 20s before I got married,” Hakim said. “I wanted a lot of different experiences and pursued a lot of careers.”

It wasn’t until she started working as a library reference associate that she felt like she found her place. She currently is in her first semester of her master’s in library science and hopes to become a librarian. 

Oftentimes books that are being banned are from queer or POC authors. The question arises as to whether these books should be read by individuals interested in learning about marginalized communities or if these books are meant only to be read by members of these communities? 

Hakim thinks reading books about other people’s experiences is useful. 

“Books and reading about experiences that aren’t yours can cause a person to feel empathy for experiences that aren’t theirs,” she said. 

All in all, these books can be gifted for people interested in banned literature and exposing themselves to different perspectives or to people who want to see themselves in books. 

At Banned Books Box, there are several ways to gift banned literature.  

As the name implies, at its heart Banned Books Box is a subscription service where books come in a box that contains one or two books and corresponding book accessories. For a gift that gives year-round, consider an annual subscription to Banned Books Box, or gift a few months of the subscription. Add a gift message to the subscription to personalize it. 

These books can also be purchased as single boxes for those who aren’t ready to commit or are looking for a one-time gift. This option features a Books Banned in a Prison Box, a Mystery Box, and boxes dedicated to certain banned books. 

The book accessories include anything that can elevate the reading experience. Hakim slips in items like candles, pens, reading logs and bookmarks. She finds her accessories by looking on Etsy and through other small businesses that make adorable book-related things. 

If you just wanted to give the gift of a single book or bookish accessory, her brick-and-mortar spot in Northside Marketplace is filled with options. 

Banned Books Box can be gifted online through bannedbooksbox.com or purchased at Northside Marketplace at 21 S Furnace Street. @bannedbooksbox

This story originally appeared in the Winter 2024 ZipsGuide to Shopping Small & Local in Akron at www.zipsguide.com.