What really happened with the ban on her books in the U.K. is more absurd than you know.

Key Points:

• Faber & Faber, Sally Rooney’s U.K. publisher, will stop publishing her books in the U.K. because paying her royalties could violate anti-terrorism laws, as Rooney pledged to donate those royalties to Palestine Action, a group proscribed as terrorist by the U.K. government.
• Palestine Action is a direct-action group targeting Israeli weapons manufacturers, proscribed as a terrorist organization in 2025 after acts including breaking into a Royal Air Force base; the ban has sparked widespread protests and over 700 arrests of peaceful demonstrators.
• Rooney’s support of Palestine Action is part of her political stance challenging the U.K. government's designation of the group as terrorist, and the joint decision with Faber to halt U.K. publishing aims to highlight the problematic nature of the anti-terrorism legislation.
• The ban on Palestine Action and related legal battles are ongoing, with the Supreme Court set to hear an appeal next month; this timing suggests the publishing decision is also a strategic move to bring attention to the issue.
• Rooney’s books remain available outside the U.K., and the controversy raises questions about government censorship, political pressure on publishers, and the intersection of art, politics, and law in Britain.