State & Regional

Utah bans another Stephen King book from all public schools

KPCW | By The Salt Lake Tribune

Published July 13, 2026 at 12:18 PM MDT

FILE - In this Nov. 13, 2013 file photo, author Stephen King poses for the cameras, during a promotional tour in Paris. Readers may know him best for “Carrie,” “The Shining” and other bestsellers commonly identified as “horror,” but King has long had an affinity for other kinds of narratives, from science fiction and prison drama to the Boston Red Sox.

The collection of Stephen King novellas inspired classic films like “Stand by Me” and “The Shawshank Redemption.”

A collection of Stephen King novellas that inspired two landmark films is the latest book banned from all Utah public schools.

The 1982 collection, called “Different Seasons,” features the following four novellas:

“Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption: Hope Springs Eternal”
“Apt Pupil: Summer of Corruption”
“The Body: Fall from Innocence”
“The Breathing Method: A Winter’s Tale”

Its addition brings the total number of books banned from Utah public schools to 36.

“The Body” was adapted into the 1986 instant classic “Stand by Me‚” starring Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman and Jerry O’Donnell. The dark, coming-of-age film follows four young boys who walk for miles in the hopes of finding the body of a missing kid.

Separately, “Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption” hit screens in 1994 as “The Shawshank Redemption.”

Read the full article by Carmen Nesbitt at sltrib.com.

This article is published through the Utah News Collaborative, a partnership of news organizations in Utah that aims to inform readers across the state.