Celebrated SA authors call on president to declare books essential

Redi Tlhabi, Lauren Beukes, Lebo Mashile and Jonny Steinberg are among a host of writers who have written to President Cyril Ramaphosa asking for the book sales to be declared an essential service.

The open letter, penned by author Mark Gevisser, says all books should be “available online, and for delivery” as “all books are educational”.

Other signatories among the more than 350 include Sisonke Msimang, Prof Njabulo Ndebele, Ronnie Kasrils, Ferial Haffajee, Zakes Mda and cartoonist Zapiro.

The letter said the authors of SA are “proud of and grateful for the sober, compassionate, and science-based leadership our government has shown during the Covid-19 pandemic” and mindful of the difficult choices that had to be made.

They said it was “in this spirit that we submit our request: that all books, and not just ‘educational’ ones, be available for trade, at level four of the lockdown”.

They said the book industry was vulnerable even before the pandemic, but that the lockdown would worsen job losses not only of booksellers but of publishers.

They authors said: “From May 1, restaurants will be able to deliver cooked food. We understand the value of this to the economy, the service industry, and consumers alike. We would like to urge that brain food be delivered, too, as an essential service.”

They also argued that reading is one of the few art forms that can be practised at a social distance, and is a pastime that encourages safe behaviour.

“We are not being simply nostalgic when we say that there is nothing like a physical book: it distils, holds and transmits knowledge like no other ‘device’. From the young child discovering the world through her first storybook to a grandmother, now alone during the lockdown, with only her books to comfort her, it is the foundation of our literate society,” they said.

Also, “to allow the book industry to trade right now is to give it a lifeline. Without that lifeline, we could well lose it. Forever.”

While purchasing a book “is often a luxury”, many in the book community “work to promote national literacy, to ensure that books are widely available for loan and purchase, and to promote the understanding that books are a necessity rather than a privilege”.