Book bans continue in Belarus — Eugenides and Iain Banks among those listed

The Belarusian Ministry of Information has once again expanded its “blacklist” of literature. According to officials, the list includes publications that “contain information and/or materials whose distribution may harm the national interests of the Republic of Belarus.”

Eighteen new titles have been added, bringing the total number of banned books to 110.

Among the newly blacklisted works is The Wasp Factory by Scottish writer Iain Banks, often referred to as the “Tarantino of literature.” The Independent included the novel in its list of the 100 best books of the 20th century.

Also banned is Modern Encyclopedia for Girls by Katya Denisova and Marina Mentusova — the latter currently co-hosts the morning show Ordinary Morning.

The list also includes the monograph Faces and Masks of Same-Sex Love. Moonlight at Dawn by Russian philosopher and sexologist Igor Kon.

A large portion of the new entries are BDSM-themed books, including:

• Russian Poker by Felix Razumovsky
• Honest Conversation About Homosexuality. The Other Side of Tolerance by Richard Cohen
• When You Come Back to Me by Emma Scott
• Innocent for Three Days by Day Lucky
• The Rise of the Dark Moon. Pagan BDSM and the Path of Trials by Raven Kaldera
• BDSM Light. Uninhibited Techniques by Rita Fox
• BDSM for Professionals. What Else You Can Try by Rita Fox
• Is BDSM a Perversion or Not? With Eyes Wide Shut by Veronika Larson
• Whip for the Innocent. BDSM Stories for Adults by Samantha Jones
• Sex Shop. Toys for Grown-Ups by Samantha Jones
• BDSM Poetry. Stories, Tales, and Poems by Sophie Renard
• Demonic Women by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch
• The Sweetness of Pain. The Science and Culture of Painful Pleasures by Leigh Cowart
• The Color of Pain. Silk by Eva Hansen
• Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

Recently, the Belarusian Ministry of Information proposed sharing banned book lists with Russian authorities.