Banned Camp: Banned Books, Comedy, and Free Speech vs. Censorship
If you think banning books is stupid, so do we.
Banned Camp is a comedy podcast where we read banned books and try to figure out why they were banned in the first place.
If you’re new here, don’t sweat it. You can start anywhere. We’ll get you oriented fast (and if you get confused, there’s a good chance we’re confused too).
Here’s what makes us different: we actually read the book out loud, every chapter, cover to cover, and we’ve never read it before. So you hear us stumble through the text, mispronounce names, miss obvious foreshadowing, and slowly piece together what freaks Moms for Liberty and the pudding-fingered politicians out.
Our listeners are called The Scary Book People. You’ll fit right in.
Past seasons: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut, and 1984 by George Orwell.
This season we’re reading Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. A dystopia built on pleasure instead of fear. People are engineered, drugged, and distracted into obedience, and taught to love the system that controls them. It’s funny, creepy, and way too familiar right now.
Book bans are at a 20-year high. The people doing the banning usually haven’t read the books… so we read them out loud together, and by the end you can honestly say you’ve read it too.
Nine seasons in. #1 ranked banned books comedy podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Hit follow. The book banners are idiots. Come help us prove it.
Banned Camp: Banned Books, Comedy, and Free Speech vs. Censorship
Brave New World | Ch. 11.2 - When Pleasure Feels Wrong | Banned Books Comedy
Death gets candy, love gets awkward, and everyone gets soma.
In Chapter 11, Lenina tries to connect with John after a night of “feelies,” while Bernard basks in borrowed fame and Robot fact-checks everything from chocolate-cream conditioning to Clarence Thomas’s butter-dish rumors.
Banned Camp is the comedy podcast where we read banned books chapter by chapter... we don’t read ahead, so you’re discovering the story with us.
Things to Listen For
- “Death conditioning” for toddlers and what it says about control and comfort
- Bernard’s ego trip and Lenina’s soma-softened heart
- Robot correcting Dan’s “butter dish” memory of the Clarence Thomas hearings
- How Huxley turns a “feelie” into a warning about pleasure as propaganda
Why Was Brave New World Banned?
Because it dares to show a society where happiness is manufactured and desire is regulated... and asks if we’d really want to live there. Sex, drugs, and a government that calls it stability make this chapter as uncomfortable now as it was in 1931.
Banworthy to Bingeworthy
If you liked this episode, check out these smart, progressive shows we love:
- It’s Been a Minute — NPR’s weekly news roundup that makes sense of the week with humor and heart.
- Good News for Lefties — A dose of progressive hope and good news when you need it most.
- The Blueprint with Jen Psaki — Big-picture politics and conversations that actually clarify the news cycle.
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Disclaimer
Banned Camp features readings and discussions of banned books for the purpose of criticism, commentary, education, and entertainment, under fair use guidelines. Material from Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is shared to spark conversation about literature and censorship. The original work remains owned by its copyright holders—buy your copy here to experience it in full.
Topics Covered:
Brave New World, Aldous Huxley, Chapter 11, John the Savage, Lenina, Bernard Marx, death conditioning, soma, censorship, banned books, banned books podcast, book banning, comedy podcast