For the sixth year running, South Africa’s only literary festival dedicated entirely to children brought authors, picture books and the pure joy of reading to schools in District Six, a place that looms large in the country’s literary imagination.

The SA Festival of Children’s Literature, held in seven primary school libraries by the Otto Foundation, ran from Monday 18 to Wednesday 20 May and featured a wide array of authors.

Reading for pleasure, not prescription

The festival, now in its sixth year, was founded by Darryl David, an education lecturer in English and Afrikaans at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) who is widely credited with putting book festivals on South Africa’s literary map.

David has founded several literary festivals, including the BookBedonnerd Literary Festival in Richmond, the Olive Schreiner Literary Festival in Cradock, the Midlands Literary Festival in Howick, the Alan Paton Literary Festival, the Adam Small Boekefees and the Books on the Bay festival in Simon’s Town. He also established South Africa’s only Book Town, in Richmond in the Karoo.

But the SA Festival of Children’s Literature, which has been running since 2020, holds a special place on that list. It is, David said, the only festival of its kind in the country, and perhaps on the continent.

“This is a literary festival where authors of children’s literature and young adult literature take centre stage, not like all the other festivals where they are an afterthought, a festival where we recognise illustrators.”

His vision is clear and deliberately simple: reading must be a pleasurable activity. “I did not want a festival where literacy takes centre stage, where we preach about how our festival is going to improve literacy rates in South Africa. Reading for pleasure is the name of the game. And maybe if we get the basics right, the bigger questions will take care of themselves down the line.”

Giraffes doing yoga

When sourcing authors for the festival David looks for books that spark imagination rather than deliver lessons.

“Unique books. Beautifully illustrated books. Books with not a single word. Books that will make children want to go home and tell their parents and siblings about the wonderful book a real author read to them today. Books about giraffes trying to do yoga. Books about a pigeon taking his first love out to dinner. Books that allow children to be children and not burden them with all the problems of the world.”

Why District Six?

David, who grew up in Howick, KwaZulu-Natal, said he noticed as an outsider to Cape Town that District Six, despite its enormous presence in South African literature, had been overlooked in favour of other areas.

“It seemed to me District Six, a place that looms large in our literary imagination, had been forgotten. Luckily, the Otto Foundation has quietly gone about the business of trying to right this oversight. And I decided to partner with it in this enterprise.”

For the festival, the foundation has partnered with the Literacy Association of South Africa (Litasa).

Who took part?

Authors from across the country took part, including some that have appeared on television over the years, such as Bianca Flanders who wrote the rhythmic and wildly popular Pumpkin Pie series.

Vennessa Scholtz of Parow read Kita’s Dance With Dust, while Lynne Joffe, of Johannesburg, had learners dancing and swaying with her reading of The Tale of Stingray Charles. Elsibe McGuffog, of Wellington talk Grade 2 learners the basics of poetry.

What comes next?

David says the District Six chapter is only one part of a two-pronged plan. In October the festival will return to its original home at UWC for the Faculty of Education’s Literacy Week, when the focus shifts to slightly older learners in the FET phase as well as student teachers.

“The two-pronged approach will be a District Six chapter focused exclusively on school children from the foundation phase up to Grade 5, and then a more adolescent-focused book festival at UWC every October,” he said. “To help them become better teachers, but also better parents.”

The SA Festival of Children’s Literature is presented under the banner: Experience Imagination.

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