The fourth Cape Flats Book Festival will take place on 1-2 February 2025 at West End Primary School in Lentegeur, Mitchells Plain – the festival will feature over 70 authors/poets with 52 sessions (for both children and adults) including poetry and writing workshops, a puppet show, a play, giveaways, books, food and exhibitors. The free festival is open to the public and is hosted by literacy NGO Read to Rise. This year’s book festival is sponsored by the National Arts Council, Department of Cultural Affairs and Sports, President’s Employment Stimulus, Western Cape Government and West End Primary School.
The upcoming book festival will feature a great variety of authors including Prof. Jonathan Jansen, Patric Tariq Mellet, Barbara Boswell, Tracy Going, Alistair Izobell, Yusuf Daniels, Jeremy Vearey, Tietie and Nanna, Gaireyah Fredericks, Karin Kotje, to name a few.
There will be a variety of poets including Koleka Patuma, Siphokazi Jonas, Toni Stuart, Michael Weeder, Heidi van Rooyen, Kirsten Deane, Lynn Hill, Ceronne Roberts, Poets vannie Kaap and Cape Cultural Collective.
There will be many interesting sessions for both adults, young adults and children over the two days. There will be great workshops for aspiring and upcoming writers/poets including a Writing Flash Fiction Workshop, 3 Steps to Shift from Story Teller to Story Seller Workshop, an Afrikaans Poetry Workshop, a Performance Poetry Workshop and a Marketing for Authors Workshop.
For children, there will be a puppet show and storytelling sessions where children can come meet the authors – Lerato Trok, Lisa Tredoux, Hani du Toit, Alicia English, Riaan Manser, Alan Durant, Kim R2, Vennessa Scholtz, Refilwe Nsibande, Zandile Ndhlovu, to name a few.
There will also be sessions for young adults, featuring Mia Arderne, Ayesha Bawa, and Clive Smith (Siyagruva Series).
There will also be exhibitors with books and food on sale including Bargain Books, Loot and Shofar Books. The book festival is free and everyone is welcome. Attendees who attend more than three sessions and get their programme punched can receive a goodie bag with a book from the READ to RISE stand, while stocks last. Sessions run from 9:30-16:00 on Saturday 1 February 2025 and10:00-14:30 on Sunday 2 February 2025.
“The Cape Flats Book Festival is rewriting the narrative of the Cape Flats by bringing stories, ideas and dreams to life. We are recasting literary festivals as events relevant and accessible to everyone. We are building bridges between communities. Our mission is to explicitly bring SA’s authors and publishers to the Cape Flats and to showcase the Cape Flats’ authors. These two worlds, so often structurally divided, are brought together at the festival.” says Read to Rise Co-Founder Athol Williams.
The Cape Flats Book Festival brings children, young adults and adults together around books - the best way to inspire to read is for them to see adults reading. It also facilitates economic opportunities for book sellers, publishers, food sellers and authors.
During the week running up to the book festival, READ to RISE will be doing a road show around the Cape Flats to 10 schools to promote the festival and some authors.
READ to RISE, founded in 2013, is a non-profit orgranisation that promotes youth literacy in under-resourced communities in South Africa. We hope to inspire children to read so that they can ‘rise’ above their circumstances. To date, the organisation has conducted over 7,800 class programmes, hosted 3 books festivals and given out over 358,000 new story books to children around South Africa. For more information, please visit www.capeflatsbookfestival.co.za or email info@readtorise.co.za
