Polk County School Board Votes to Keep “Thirteen Reasons Why” and “Check & Mate” in High School Library
The Polk County School Board voted Tuesday to keep two challenged young adult novels in a district high school library, ending a review that moved through two committees before reaching the school board.
Board members voted unanimously to retain “Thirteen Reasons Why,” Jay Asher’s 2007 novel. The vote on “Check & Mate,” a 2023 novel by Ali Hazelwood, was 5-2, with Vice Chair Travis L. Keyes and Chair Justin Sharpless opposed.
A petitioner filed a formal objection to both titles. A school-level review committee met first and voted to retain them. The petitioner appealed, sending the matter to the District Appeal Committee, which met in May and also voted to keep both books in the high school library collection.
In a third and final appeal for review, the petitioner brought the matter before the superintendent’s office and the school board. Superintendent Frederick Heid recommended that the board retain both titles, citing the reviews already conducted along with a review of state requirements.
Sharpless said he read both books and found value in “Thirteen Reasons Why” for a student struggling with ideation [of self-harm], but could not find the same value in the second title, which he characterized as a young adult romance. He said “Check & Mate” came close to crossing the line of the applicable standards, and that the committee’s 3-1 vote to retain it raised concern for him. Keyes said he also voted against the book after reading it.
Review Process and Parental Rights
Miller and Allen both praised the district’s review and appeal process and pointed to the opt-out system that allows parents to restrict their children from accessing specific titles at school. Miller said she voted to uphold the superintendent’s recommendation and the committees’ work. Allen said the district has been responsive in following state law, removing 53 books as a result, and that he might have viewed the challenge differently at the middle school level.
Under Florida law, a parent of a student in the district or a resident of the county may formally object to material used in a classroom or available in a school library. Districts are required to maintain a process for reviewing those objections, and the school board holds the final decision.
The district pulled the books pending review, then returned them to shelves after review committees voted to retain them. The district later adopted the opt-out system for families that is now in place.
Thirteen Reasons Why
“Thirteen Reasons Why” is not new to challenge in Polk County. The title was among 16 books flagged by County Citizens Defending Freedom in a district-wide objection filed in December 2021. Asher’s debut novel has ranked among the most frequently challenged books in American schools for more than a decade and was adapted into a Netflix series in 2017.
The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom named it the most challenged book in the country that year, with its treatment of suicide cited as the reason, and ranked it third on the association’s list of the 100 most banned and challenged books of the decade spanning 2010 through 2019.
Published in 2007 by Razorbill, the book follows high school student Clay Jensen after he receives a set of recordings left behind by his classmate Hannah Baker, who died by suicide. The book became a New York Times bestseller and drew renewed attention after Netflix adapted it into a series in 2017, a run that also drove a surge in challenges.
Educators remain divided on it, with supporters describing it as a route into conversations with teenagers about bullying and suicide, and critics arguing the story frames a teenager’s death as retribution against the people who wronged her.
Check & Mate
“Check & Mate” was Hazelwood’s first book written for a young adult audience, following a run of adult romances that included “The Love Hypothesis.” Published in November 2023 by G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, it centers on Mallory Greenleaf, an 18-year-old auto mechanic and former chess prodigy who returns to competitive play after beating the reigning world champion in a charity tournament. The book was named an NPR Best Book of the Year and was the top Kids’ Indie Next List selection for November and December 2023.
Neither the agenda item nor the committee record released identified the petitioner or detailed the specific objections raised to either title.
If you or someone you know is struggling, help is available. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline can be reached by calling or texting 988 anywhere in the United States. In Polk County, Peace River Center operates a 24-hour Emotional Support and Crisis Line at 863-519-3744 or 800-627-5906, and offers text support by sending "Talk" to 863-204-3443. Statewide, 211 connects callers to crisis counseling and local referrals 24 hours a day.
Sources: “Meet Your Polk County School Board And School Officials,” The Citrus Tea News, thecitrustea.com, June 9, 2026; Polk County School Board Agenda, Aug. 25, 2026, polkschoolsfl.com; Board Members, Polk County Public Schools, polkschoolsfl.com; Florida Statutes s. 1006.28, Online Sunshine, leg.state.fl.us; Polk County, Florida, School District Removes Sixteen Books From School Libraries, National Coalition Against Censorship, ncac.org; Top 10 Most Challenged Books Lists, American Library Association Office for Intellectual Freedom, ala.org; “Banned Spotlight: Thirteen Reasons Why,” Banned Books Week, bannedbooksweek.org; “Check & Mate,” G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, penguinrandomhouse.com; “A Q&A with Ali Hazelwood, Author of November/December Kids’ Indie Next List Top Pick ‘Check & Mate,'” American Booksellers Association, bookweb.org; “Check and Mate,” Open Library, openlibrary.org; “13 Reasons Why,” Open Library, openlibrary.org; 24-Hour Emotional Support and Crisis Line, Peace River Center, peacerivercenter.org; 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, 988lifeline.org
