A newly released report claims that public libraries and publishers are sidelining faith in accounts of American history while promoting progressive and revisionist narratives to young readers.
The report, published by conservative children’s publisher Brave Books and titled “The America 250 Faith Gap,” reviewed more than 300 books featured across 25 reading lists compiled by children’s publishers, public libraries and other institutions ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary.
According to the study, none of the titles directly addressed faith, religious liberty or Christianity’s influence on the founding of the United States, even though religious freedom is protected under the First Amendment.
Brave Books said the lists omitted books on subjects such as the Great Awakening, the religious lives of the Founders and the role of the Black church in American history. Instead, the report noted the inclusion of titles such as Ibram X. Kendi’s “Stamped for Kids” and Nikole Hannah-Jones’s “Born on the Water,” a picture book connected to the disputed 1619 Project.
The report also pointed to several recommended books that emphasize transgender activism during the 1969 Stonewall Riots, including one picture book aimed at young children. It further cited the frequent promotion of Kate Messner’s History Smashers series, which says it uncovers “myths, lies, and secrets” in American history, along with favorable biographies of former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris, while finding no comparable biographies of Republican leaders.
Brave Books said the most prevalent themes across the reading lists included the American Revolution, minority perspectives, Black history, civil rights and women’s history. By contrast, books centered on American symbols, classic works, the Founders and civics represented a smaller share of the recommendations.
The report also observed that the lists often describe American history with terms such as “complicated,” “hidden” and “untold,” language Brave Books argues reflects an effort to reshape the national narrative rather than commemorate it.
While Brave Books acknowledged that many of the recommended books have literary value and highlight meaningful historical perspectives, the publisher argued that leaving out faith gives young readers an incomplete understanding of U.S. history.
The report’s findings drew sharp criticism from former HUD Secretary Dr. Ben Carson and OutKick host Riley Gaines, who are both Brave Books authors.
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“The Declaration of Independence says our rights come from our Creator,” he continued. “Benjamin Franklin called the Constitutional Convention to prayer before they produced a document that has stood for 250 years. George Washington survived battle after battle in ways that defied all human explanation. These men knew where their strength came from.”
Carson argued it is essential for young people to understand the role faith and religious liberty played in U.S. history to truly appreciate their freedoms.
“A generation that does not know where their freedoms come from will not know why those freedoms are worth fighting for,” he continued. “Ronald Reagan said freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. He was not exaggerating. He was being precise. When you raise children on a version of history that calls America complicated and unfinished and never once tell them that this country was founded by men of extraordinary faith and courage who believed they were accountable to God for what they built, you are not educating them. You are making them vulnerable.”
Gaines added that teaching children to love their country does not mean ignoring its flaws, but it also does not mean embellishing them.
“The problem is that many institutions have become so focused on emphasizing what’s broken, unfinished, or flawed that they’ve stopped teaching kids what makes America the greatest, freest, most prosperous nation in the world,” Gaines said. “That’s why so many people from all across the world try to live, work, and start a family here through whatever means necessary.”
“As we celebrate America’s 250th birthday, kids deserve more than a story about what’s wrong with America. They deserve to know why generations of people around the world have looked to America as a beacon of hope, opportunity, and freedom. That’s not indoctrination. That’s telling the whole story.”
Brave Books CEO Trent Talbot said the report exposes a systemic problem in education where he says there is an intentional push to erase Christianity’s influence from the nation’s past.
“When reading lists for America’s 250th anniversary don’t include a single book acknowledging Christianity’s role, that’s not an oversight. That’s a choice,” Talbot told Fox News Digital. “What this report confirms is something parents have suspected but couldn’t quantify: the bias isn’t geographic, it’s institutional. Red state, blue state… it doesn’t matter when the gatekeepers are all aligned ideologically and share the same assumptions.”
In response to these findings, the conservative publisher has launched its own book campaign for America’s 250th focused on providing a more positive view of U.S. history.
Carson’s new book, “Built on Faith,” along with Riley Gaines’ picture book, “One Two Three We Are Free,” and Kirk Cameron’s “Built by the Brave,” are new releases from the publisher. The company intends for the series to be for families looking for alternative books that celebrate America’s history of “faith, bravery and achievement.”
“We started Brave Books because we saw this coming,” Talbot said. “The library system, among other institutions, doesn’t have a diversity problem. It has a uniformity problem. Every major institution has quietly agreed on what children should think about America, and faith, patriotism, and earned pride didn’t make the cut.”
