Voltaire's novel Candide was banned in both Europe and the United States because it opposed the government and the Catholic Church equally. It poked fun at hypocrisy in religion and made fun of the monarchy like ways France and other countries were run. Europe and specifically France was more upset at the way Candide portrayed the government and the Church, while the United States did not like the way it portrayed the Church. However, Candide was still an extremely popular book when it was banned.