BROOKSVILLE — Three residents urged the County Commission on April 14 to cancel the county library system’s subscription to BookPage, a free book-review magazine they described as pushing a “far-left” and “woke” agenda.
County Commissioner Steve Champion said he would personally file the paperwork to challenge the magazine, responding to a resident who had emailed commissioners about it.
“I’ll put my name on it,” Champion said. “I’ll do that right now.”
County Administrator Jeff Rogers said the county would reply to the resident’s email with a link to the challenge form. County Attorney Jon Jouben said the magazine would have to go through the library’s materials challenge process to protect the county from potential litigation by publishers.
“I’m sick and tired of hearing this stuff,” Champion said. “There’s no room for smut books and garbage like this in a public library that the taxpayers are paying for.”
The speakers noted that Citrus County canceled its $3,300 annual subscription at the end of last year and that similar efforts were made in Sumter County.
Resident Carol Yakimo-Avelo said the magazine promotes ideologies “known as ‘far-left’ or ‘woke’” and does not reflect traditional conservative values. She said no conservative titles appeared on its bestseller lists and argued the money was wasted when free online book reviews are widely available.
If the county keeps the subscription, she said, it should also offer a magazine highlighting conservative and Judeo-Christian titles.
“Do the right thing by having it canceled,” she said.
Carol Eckenroth said she supports the library system but objects to BookPage’s content, which she said includes books promoting “woke-ism,” Marxism, abortion, witchcraft and LGBTQ themes, including children’s titles.
She urged commissioners to cancel the subscription immediately and seek a replacement magazine featuring “wholesome” books for children.
John Aveola, a lobbyist with the Christian Family Coalition who said he led the campaign against BookPage in Citrus County, told commissioners the magazine is “very left-wing” and never features conservative titles. Fewer than 40% of counties subscribe, he said.
Aveola said Community Services Director Chris Linsbeck told him the subscription is paid through a state library grant.
“I feel that grant could be used for better purposes rather than to promote these ‘left-wing’ values,” he said.
About BookPage
On its website, the magazine describes itself as a trusted source for book reviews, recommendations and author interviews for more than 35 years. Its monthly print and digital guide reaches more than 400,000 readers through 3,500 subscribing public libraries and bookstores, according to the site.
The magazine covers genres including literary and historical fiction, mysteries, thrillers, nonfiction, memoir, romance, young adult and children’s books.
BookPage is free and distributed in 48 states. In Florida, it is available at Books-A-Million stores and public libraries.
Commission response
Champion called for an audit of the library system and said politics has no place there unless children are being taught about the Constitution.
All the cities listed on BookPage’s subscriber list are “very blue,” Champion said, with Hernando County the only “red” county on the list.
Linsbeck said the library system has subscribed to BookPage for 15 years and receives 150 copies a month, divided among four branches. State aid covers the $1,305 annual fee, he said, and the copies are placed on tables rather than handed to patrons.
“At the board’s direction, we can follow the procedure that Jon laid out, or we can discuss further,” Linsbeck said.
Popular with patrons
At the Spring Hill branch library, a staff member said the magazine is popular with patrons, who sometimes return copies with titles circled to suggest purchases for the library.
Champion said at the meeting he had heard “COVID dividers” were still up in the library. “It’s over with already,” he said. “Why isn’t that gone?”
The staffer said the dividers in the computer room and at workstations are not related to COVID-19 but are meant to separate users’ workspaces so belongings don’t get mixed up.
Sumter County
Two residents raised similar objections to BookPage at a Sumter County Commission meeting in October 2025, according to Villages-News.com. They said the magazine highlighted “inappropriate books,” including titles about transgender people, and had a left-wing bent.
Commissioners initially agreed to write the Friends of the Library asking that the magazine be removed. In November, however, they apologized for what they called a “knee-jerk” reaction after reviewing the magazine themselves and hearing from readers who objected to its removal.
The Friends group had already canceled the subscription, and commissioners said the magazine should be placed in the Friends section of the library.