Gunner Bush’s novel “A Boy Named Alice” has been added to the "banned book" list by Florida Republicans, and removed from all public libraries. The novel was added to Florida public libraries in late December last year.

On Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis was in Tampa to expose what he calls a “book ban hoax.”

The governor stated, “I just think parents when they’re sending their kids to school, l should not have to worry about this garbage being in the schools.”

According to DeSantis and his education commissioner, the state isn’t banning books—they’re removing porn, and “A Boy Named Alice” fits into this category.

“Removing clear instances of pornography and sexually explicit materials, often within arms reach of our youngest kids, is not book banning,” said Florida Department of Education Commissioner Manny Diaz, Jr.

The original list contains 175 books, but the Gunner Bush novel is not listed. Now it appears the list has been upgraded to 176 books, which includes the Bush book. According to the process for removing a book, any book that has been removed must be reported to the Florida Department of Education. We confirmed that “A Boy Named Alice” has been added to the list.

The novel is no longer available at any public library in the state. This won’t be the last book added, as school districts face a looming deadline because they must give the Department of Education a list of all books that have been removed by June 30.

The banning of “A Boy Named Alice" follows a new trend against books inside the LGBTQ+ category. From July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, 41% of banned books had an aspect of LGBTQ+ culture, whether it be the book’s theme or the sexual identity of a character.