1. COMMUNAL READING AS
A WAY TO FOSTER A
READING CULTURE
The One Book One Library Project at the
University of Johannesburg

2. Overview
Books can be
dangerous. T
he best ones
should be
labeled "This
could change
your
life." ~Helen
Exley
 Reading and literacy in South
Africa
 Reading culture in South Africa
 The One Book communal
reading movement
 The One Book One Library
project at the University of
Johannesburg
 History of UJ
 Student profile
 Results of the project

3. Literacy and reading in South
Africa
Reading
maketh a
full man.
-Essays
(1625) by
Francis
Bacon
 Adult literacy rate = 88%
 Grade 4 and 5 learners last in
PIRLS study
 Impact of multilingualism
 Not enough attention to reading
for enjoyment in schools
 The DoE National Reading
Strategy
 Includes encouraging reading for
enjoyment

4. Reading culture in South Africa
Take up
and read,
take up and
read!.
- Confessions
(397) by Saint
Augustine
 Outcomes of survey of reading
habits of adult South Africans
(South African Book
Development Council, 2007)
 Prefer to read newspapers and
magazines
 Read for knowledge, not leisure
 Majority of the South African
population are infrequent
readers

5. Impact of owning books
When I get a
little money,
I buy books;
and if any is
left I buy
food and
clothes.-
Desiderius
Erasmus
 Evans et al: Family scholarly culture
and educational success: books and
schooling in 27 nations (including
South Africa)
 More than 500 books in the home
gives a child a big advantage
 Mean number of leisure books in
South African households = 8
 Median = 32
 More than half of South Africa’s
households have no books

6. Role of libraries
The things I
want to
know are in
books; my
best friend is
the man
who'll get me
a book I ain't
read.- Abraham
Lincoln
 Access to books through libraries
 Only 8% of schools have a functional
library
 Community (public) libraries trying to
bridge the gap
 Academic libraries focus on curriculum
related reading
 Reading circles study groups and
book clubs
 Jozi Book Fair
http://www.jozibookfair.org.za/

7. The One Book communal reading
movement
 Initiated by Nancy Pearl, executive
director of the Washington Center
for the Book, Seattle Public
Library, 1998
 Read the same book at the same
time
 Activities related to theme
 Involve author
 ALA Manual
 http://www.ala.org/publicprograms

8. The One Book One Library Project
at University of Johannesburg
It is wonderful
that even today,
with all the
competition of
radio, television,
films and
records, the
book has kept
its precious
character. A
book is
somehow
precious.- John
Steinbeck
 “A final challenge: How do we get
students to read books and not
merely surf the internet? How do
we get them to read wider than
prescribed books? There is a
world out there waiting to be
discovered”.
 One Book One Library to
promote reading for pleasure and
involve all campus libraries

9. UJ is a Comprehensive
University
… an
institution
that bring
diverse
kinds of
learning
programmes
, from
vocational to
professional
and general
formative,
under one
roof.
Gibbon, 2004:42
 Born out of the merger of three very
different institutions
 One of six ‘comprehensive’
universities in South Africa
 50% of all students are first
generation at university
 Low level of reading and writing
skills
 Do not buy textbooks, let alone
books for recreational reading

10. How to…
I cannot
live without
books
- Thomas
Jefferson
 Used ALA Manual “Planning
your Community Wide Read”
http://www.ala.org/publicprogra
ms
 Committee with campus library
reps
 Nominated titles – involved
Department of English
 Committee did final selection

11. Selection criteria
A little
learning,
indeed, may
be a
dangerous
thing, but the
want of
learning is a
calamity to
any people.
- Frederick
Douglass
 Good literature and easy to read
(language should be
understandable for wide
audience)
 Have a strong message
 South African author
 Theme should be of interest to a
diverse audience
 Fiction or non-fiction

12. And we read…
 2009 – Three-letter Plague by Jonny
Steinberg
A groundbreaking work of reportage about
pride and shame, sex and death, Three-
letter Plague sheds new light on the place
the African AIDS pandemic has come to
occupy
 2010 – Black Diamond by Zakes Mda
The concept of achieving black diamond status
is well known in post apartheid South Africa
and in this satirical work the author tackles this
and every other conceivable South African
stereotype, skillfully (and with the lightest
touch) turning them upside down and exposing
their ironies.
 Both award winning South African

13. Reading process
Jonny Steinberg
Zakes Mda
 Two to three months reading period
 Book displays in campus libraries
 Reading guides
 Arrange for interaction with author
 Steinberg - Blog with the author
 Mda - Facebook group (83 members) and visit to
lead discussion groups.
http://www.facebook.com/posted.php?id=11780641
4916578#!/group.php?gid=117806414916578&v=w
all
 Discussion groups in all campus
libraries
 Invite people who have read the book by
sms/email

14. The Facebook Group
Sorry for the
belated thank you
to all at UJ who
made my visit such
a resounding
success. I had a
wonderful time and
enjoyed interacting
with your brilliant
students, and
everyone else.
Zakes Mda 22 Sept
2010

15. Participation
 Number of copies- 177
 Reading period – 2
months
 Number or readers- 442
 Discussion groups – 88
Book intimidating – 326
pages
HIV/AIDS= emotional topic
Author could not visit
 Number of copies -211
 Reading period – 3
months
 Number of readers –
932
 Discussion groups – 278
Book inviting - 207 pages
Topic more light hearted
Visit from immensely
popular author
2009 Three-letter Plague 2010 Black Diamond

16. As it happened…
2009
2010

17. Wow,wow is all i can say.it was a great honour meeting him guys
what a down to earth person. Pinky Sithole on the Facebook Group

18. Budget
This will
never be a
civilized
country until
we expend
more money
for books
than we do
for chewing
gum. ~Elber
t Hubbard
 Can get started on small budget
 R40 000 – R60 000
 Buying copies of the selected title the
greatest cost
 Sell copies of selected books afterwards
 Marketing costs
 Author visit
 Partners important. Faculty of
Humanities helped finance the Mda visit
 UJ will be seeking donors for 2011
 We will design a logo for the project

19. Is it worth it?
It has increased
my knowledge
tremendously. I
can never have
the same attitude
I used to have on
HIV. Incredible
(Female,
undergraduate
student, 2009).
It cleared up
some
stereotypes that
I had about
South African
culture. This is a
truly South
African story
(Female
undergraduate
student, 2010)
 Get to know students better
 Makes library visible
 Staff enjoy the project
 It does impact on readers
but it is a long term project