A banned books club was recently launched in Stellenbosch to encourage student literacy and leisure reading.
This is according to the founder of the club, Samantha Wynne, a BA (Humanities) final-year student and chairperson of the United Nations Association of South Africa’s (UNASA) Stellenbosch University (SU) chapter.
“So many students have to read unbelievable amounts every day for class, but almost no students read for pleasure anymore – we just don’t have the time,” said Wynne. “Dedicating a slot every week to discussing a novel really encourages people to read more on their own.”
Wynne said that the club was inspired by the rising number of banned books in the United States of America (US).
Public schools across the US implemented nearly 16 000 book bans since 2021, according to a 2025 report by Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists, and Novelists (PEN) America.
“[This is] a number not seen since the Red Scare McCarthy era of the 1950s,” read the report.
“All the books we chose are already banned in the US, or ones that are on their way to being banned,” said Wynne. “I thought, instead of being upset about it, why not channel that into silent protest in Stellenbosch?”
Samantha Wynne, founder of the Banned Books Club, reading the first novel on their itinerary, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. Other books on their list include Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, and The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood, said Wynne. PHOTO: Lienke Norval
Dr Daniel Roux, a senior lecturer at the SU English Department, said that literature is partly meant to push boundaries.
“Part of the point of literature is to be challenging and controversial,” said Roux. “Censorship has always been interesting because it has this ability to foreground books that do exactly those things.”
“[The club allows us] to keep ourselves informed and learn together whilst listening to each other’s point of views about books with powerful themes,” said Ornela Meri, a second-year BA (Humanities) student and UNASA SU Chapter youth literacy executive.
Novels hold wisdom
Any SU student registered with UNASA on their student account can join the club, according to an Instagram post by the UNASA SU Chapter.
“We meet every Wednesday evening for an hour and a half to chat about our opinions of the novel we’re currently all reading,” said Wynne.
Meri said that 26 students have signed up for the club so far.
An annotated copy of The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, along with an annotation pack, which members receive upon joining the United Nations Association of South Africa’s (UNASA) Banned Books Club at Stellenbosch University, according to Samantha Wynne, the club’s founder. PHOTO: Lienke Norval
Members are provided with copies of the prescribed books, which they return after reading, according to Wynne.
“We then plan to donate the copies to local libraries and schools,” said Wynne. “It’s a cyclical thing for us – enrich our students’ minds, and pass it on for more students to love.”
Yusuf Achilles, a SU postgraduate LLB student and member of the club, said that he is most looking forward to reading The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood.
“I think this story is especially important to read as a man, as it gives me a perspective that I normally cannot experience,” said Achilles.
“We forget that novels hold wisdom we might not have reached ourselves, especially as young people,” said Wynne.
Copies of The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, which the members of the Banned Books Club will read and then donate to local libraries and schools, according to Samantha Wynne, founder of the club. PHOTO: Lienke Norval