Story perspectives

Faber & Faber Pull Sally Rooney Books After Palestine Action

By Drooid · Oct 23, 2026, 11:57 PM UTC · How we work

Left

291% Sales Surge

Sally Rooney’s books were withdrawn from sale in the United Kingdom in late October 2026 after she publicly supported the proscribed group Palestine Action.
The withdrawal shows how anti-terror legislation threatens literary freedom and broader free expression.
Hundreds of writers signed a Statesman letter calling the withdrawal an affront to free speech.
Bookstores reported a 291% sales surge for Rooney’s remaining titles.

Right

Independent Shop Activism

Faber & Faber will stop selling Sally Rooney’s books in the United Kingdom after she supported Palestine Action.
A Dublin independent bookstore donated €3,000 of weekend sales to Medical Aid for Palestine, emphasizing that small shops can make political statements.
Louisa Earls said the donation covered books’ full cost, not merely profits.
Earls noted independent shops can make political statements, unlike larger organisations that may not.

History

Historical Context

In September 1988 Viking Penguin released Salman Rushdie’s *The Satanic Verses*. Within weeks Pakistan banned the book (Nov 1988) and 10,000 protesters stormed Islamabad on 12 Feb 1989, killing six. Two days later Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa with a $1 million bounty on Rushdie, prompting worldwide bans and self-censorship that echo today’s removal of Sally Rooney’s titles.

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291% Sales Surge

Sally Rooney’s books were withdrawn from sale in the United Kingdom in late October 2026 after she publicly supported the proscribed group Palestine Action.
The withdrawal shows how anti-terror legislation threatens literary freedom and broader free expression.
Hundreds of writers signed a Statesman letter calling the withdrawal an affront to free speech.
Bookstores reported a 291% sales surge for Rooney’s remaining titles.

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