Yandex Books removes books about LGBT and sexuality education

82 of them relate to the topic of feminism and sexuality, and 28 to the topic of LGBT

Updated : the books previously mentioned in the news “Tyrant Husbands. How to Stop Male Cruelty”, “Sex Life in Ancient Greece” and “Orlando” were removed only from the collections, but not from the Yandex Books website itself. The news has been updated; we apologize to the readers.

At least 110 books on topics that affect feminism, LGBT and sexuality education have been removed from the Yandex Books book service (formerly Bookmate), Vorstka has discovered.

The absence of books on the platform is visible in public “shelves,” that is, collections of books on a specific topic made by users of the service. Of the 110 deleted books that Vorstka found, 82 related to the topic of feminism and sexuality, and 28 related to the topic of LGBT people.

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Among the deleted books are works for which a protocol was drawn up for “Subscription Editions”

So, on the “shelf” of nine years ago “Feminism 101”, 12 out of 14 books disappeared . Among them there are, for example, books by Anna Shadrina “Unmarried. Sex, love and family outside of marriage”, as well as “On Women” by Susan Sontag.

“About Women” and another book by the latter author became one of the reasons why a protocol was drawn up against the St. Petersburg independent bookstore “Subscription Editions” in April of this year under the article on “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relationships and gender reassignment” (Part 1 of Article 6.21 of the Administrative Code). The minutes stated that on February 24, 2025, three books were purchased from Subscription Editions: “Everyone’s Body” by Olivia Lange, “On Women” and “Against Interpretation and Other Essays” by Susan Sontag.

It was noted that the materials contained signs of “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations” and the ideas of the non-existent “ LGBT movement ” banned in Russia. Earlier, on April 10, security forces came to the store with an inspection and a list of books that employees were supposed to remove from the shelves.

From another selection about feminism and sex education, books such as “Women and Power: A Manifesto” by Mary Beard, “OH. An intimate conversation about that very organ” by Andrzej Grishewska and Przemyslaw Pilarski, “My body positivity. How I fell in love with the body I live in” by Tess Holliday, as well as Lena Klimova’s book “Real Girl”. Earlier, “Bumaga” wrote that the publishing house “Samokat” asked bookstores to remove 23 books from sale, including “The Real Girl” on the list.

Even works on sexuality in the ancient world were removed from Yandex Books

Among the books on sexuality and sex education, “Sexual Life in Ancient China” by Robert van Gulik, “History of Sexuality III. Self-care" by the famous French philosopher Michel Foucault. “Birth of the Pill” also disappeared. How Four Enthusiasts Rediscovered Sex and Started a Revolution by Jonathan Eig, which tells the story of the first birth control pill and the people who made it possible.

The book Not Only Oranges by Janet Winterson and others, including some books in English, were removed from the shelves about LGBT people. “Not only oranges” are also found on the list of prohibited books for the Megamarket marketplace, as journalist Alexander Plyushchev previously reported.

In addition, the book “Sexual Crimes. Chikatilo and others" by Andrey Tkachenko.

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On June 14 it became known that the book by Irina Roldugina and Katerina Suverina “Flash. The unknown history of HIV in the USSR" was removed from Yandex Books.

On May 14, 2025, law enforcement officers conducted searches of current and former employees of the Eksmo publishing group . Investigative actions affected employees of the publishing houses Popcorn Books and Individuum, which are part of the Eksmo structure. About 10 people were detained. The head of Popcorn Books and Individuum, Dmitry Protopopov, sales director Pavel Ivanov, and Artyom Vakhlyaev, who is responsible for logistics and distribution of books, have been placed under house arrest.

According to investigators, the publishers allegedly distributed more than 900 copies of ten books that, according to law enforcement officers, “promote LGBT ideology.” A criminal case has been initiated under the article on organizing the activities of an extremist organization .

Illustration: "Yandex"

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