Silent Book Club wraps up the year in Potch - 6 December

Potchefstroom’s book lovers have one last date with quiet this year. The Silent Book Club is back for its final meet-up of 2025, and this time it comes with a festive tilt and a very low-pressure vibe.

There’s no website to bookmark, no ticket link to panic-buy from, and no pricing to calculate. The only digital trail is on Facebook, for anyone who likes to double-check plans before leaving the house.

When and where to pitch up

The year-end session happens on 6 December 2025 at 13:00. The venue is Blank Canvas Café, 72 Thabo Mbeki Way, on the NWU campus. You’ll find it at Gate 6, in the same building as the Biokinetics, Bult. The address is Potchefstroom.

How it works, in plain speak

Silent Book Club is exactly what it sounds like: people gather, everyone reads their own book, and nobody is put on the spot to explain plot twists or defend their taste. No sign-ups, no due dates, no awkward “so what did you think?” circle unless you want one afterwards. It’s a read-in, not a book report.

This last session of the year invites readers to bring something they’re keen to read and settle in for a calm, cosy hour or two. The theme is festive, but the main rule stays the same: read together, quietly.

The Honesty Library angle

There’s also a “Bring a book, take a book” Honesty Library running alongside the gathering. The idea is simple and refreshingly old-school: swap a book you’re done with for one you haven’t met yet, no forms, no tracking system, just trust and the hope that someone else will love what you’ve passed on. Stories move from one reader to the next, like a relay race where the baton is a paperback.

The event is in collaboration with the second-hand bookshop in Baillie Park, which is basically a public service for anyone whose bookshelf is already bending but still somehow has space for “just one more”.

With the school year done, the holiday buzz starting, and everyone’s social battery on a mixed schedule, a silent book club is a pretty sharp way to sign off. Show up, read, maybe swap a book, and head out feeling a little more human. No noise required.