In John Wyndham’s The Chrysalids, David Strorm lives in the community of Waknuk.
Waknuk is a strict farming settlement in a post-nuclear society. Its inhabitants follow religious rules about the “true image” of humanity and reject people, animals, and plants that show mutations. The community’s fear of deviation creates the social pressure at the heart of the novel.
David discovers that he and several other young people possess an unusual form of telepathy. Because Waknuk’s authorities regard difference as a sign of corruption, the children must hide their ability. The story follows their attempt to survive discovery and persecution.
The novel’s wider geography includes the Fringes, where exiles live, and Sealand, a more advanced society associated with the telepathic children. Waknuk is therefore not the name of the whole world or the refuge they seek.