Texas District Weighs Ban on ‘Cat Kid Comic Club’

A beloved kids’ graphic novel series is now at the center of Texas’ latest book ban fight. Katy Independent School District is weighing whether to remove Cat Kid Comic Club, the spin-off from Dav Pilkey’s wildly popular Dog Man universe, from its shelves.

The board is set to vote in the coming days on whether to retain, modify, or pull the title entirely. The challenge places one of the country’s most recognizable children’s authors squarely in the crosshairs of an escalating statewide crackdown on school library books.

A Local Flashpoint in a Statewide Surge

Katy ISD has removed 57 titles over the past five years, making it one of the most active districts in Texas when it comes to book challenges. The current review of Cat Kid Comic Club arrives amid a sweeping wave of removals across the state, where hundreds of books have been pulled for review during the 2025–2026 school year.

Texas Senate Bill 12 bars school programs that mention race, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation in K–12 classrooms. Districts have responded with formal challenges and quiet “weeding” of collections, creating what critics describe as an atmosphere of caution around even mainstream children’s titles.

The result has been broad. In some districts, classic novels and books with LGBTQ+ themes have disappeared from shelves. Others have targeted unexpected titles, from award-winning literary staples to lighthearted kids’ series.

The growing movement mirrors battles playing out nationwide, as seen in recent coverage of students pushing back against rising school book bans and new legislative efforts to expand restrictions in other states.

Why ‘Cat Kid Comic Club’ Matters

Pilkey’s Cat Kid Comic Club is designed to celebrate creativity, friendship, and the messy joy of making art. A staple in elementary school libraries, the series encourages kids to draw their own comics and embrace collaboration.

Its inclusion in a formal challenge underscores how far the current debate has stretched. Advocates have warned that recent legislation would lead to “classic, quality, and innocent books” being caught in review sweeps. Statewide tracking projects have documented the rapid acceleration of removals in a single semester, mapping hundreds of titles under scrutiny.

The Katy ISD board’s vote will determine the immediate fate of Cat Kid Comic Club in the district. But the implications stretch further. When a high-profile children’s series becomes part of the culture war over school libraries, it signals that no corner of the bookshelf is entirely immune.

For young readers who found their love of stories through Pilkey’s comic panels, the decision could shape what the next generation discovers — or doesn’t — when they wander the school library stacks.