Sharp, funny and heartfelt look at surviving an elite boys’ school

WESLEY Roodt’s novel All the Saints enters the landscape of South African school stories with a voice that is direct and grounded in the familiar rhythms of the Eastern Cape.

- LUTHO PASIYA

ALL the Saints follows Isaac 'Izzy' Kingston as he looks back on his years at an elite boys school in the Eastern Cape and traces the ways those experiences shaped his sense of self. | Supplied

(Supplied)

The setting is a prestigious boys' school where the roar of the wind is rivalled only by the chants of learners who throw themselves into school traditions.

At the centre is Isaac “Izzy” Kingston, who looks back on his high school years after leaving university and returning home with a mix of regret and curiosity. His memories arrive with humour and unease as he tries to understand the meaning behind the events that shaped him.

Roodt has spoken openly about the origins of the book, noting, “I wrote because I did not know what else to do”

This sense of writing as an act of survival mirrors the tone of Izzy’s first-person narration. The story guides the reader from the intensity of Reunion Weekend, where the rugby field becomes a stage for the school’s identity, to the quiet moments of private reflection that Izzy guards closely.

His voice is filled with jokes that cut through the tension, but his observations reveal the contradictions of the elite school culture. The school expects confidence and control, yet many learners navigate it with a fear of being exposed or judged.