The novel that inspired the Academy Award-winning film "Precious" is banned from every Canyons School District school in Sandy after Utah added "Push" by Sapphire to its statewide banned-books list Wednesday, Aug. 19.

The 1996 novel was removed after Davis, Granite and Washington County school districts each voted to classify it as "objective sensitive material" under state law. Davis School District's review committee said the book "has no serious value for minors," the Salt Lake Tribune reported. The ban brings the statewide total to 37 titles that must be pulled from all public school shelves.

Under House Bill 29, signed in 2024, a book is automatically banned from every public school in Utah once three districts, or two districts and five charter schools, determine it meets state definitions of pornographic or indecent content.

Districts must destroy their copies.

That means all Canyons District schools, including Alta High School, Hillcrest High School and Jordan High School, are required to remove "Push" along with the 36 other banned titles. The list includes works by Margaret Atwood, Toni Morrison, Judy Blume, Stephen King, John Green and Sarah J. Maas.

A law driven by few districts

Nearly all of Utah's statewide bans have originated from just two districts, Davis and Washington County, according to a Salt Lake Tribune investigation published in May. Utah has 42 public school districts, meaning fewer than 10% of districts can impose content decisions on all 656,311 public school students statewide.

Utah leads all U.S. states in the number of books banned statewide. South Carolina is the only other state with a comparable state-level ban list.

The ACLU and several authors, including Elana K. Arnold and Ellen Hopkins, whose books account for five of the 37 banned titles, filed a lawsuit against Utah over HB 29 in January.

Author responds

Sapphire, the pen name of author Ramona Lofton, posted a statement on her website, as reported by the Tribune, calling "Push" a story about "the awakening and healing of a violent and violated child."

"When we ban books like 'Push,' we are in danger of falling into the sinkholes of hate and prejudice and ignorance and of losing what little love we have left for each other," she wrote.

The novel follows Precious Jones, an illiterate 16-year-old in Harlem who endures rape by her father and abuse by her mother before a teacher helps her find literacy and self-determination. Its film adaptation premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, winning the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award before earning two Oscars.

The statewide banned list started with 13 titles when HB 29 took effect in July 2024 and has nearly tripled in two years. No statement from Canyons School District or its board members addressing the ban was available as of Thursday, Aug. 20.