Hugely Successful Wekend for Featherston Booktown
Scores of primary school children clutching $10 vouchers, eager to choose their own books from more than 15 new, second
hand and antiquarian booksellers in ANZAC Hall was an outstanding feature of the third Featherston Booktown at the
weekend.
Chair of the Featherston Booktown Trust, Lincoln Gould estimates the number of visitors to Booktown to be around 4,000 –
double the crowd at last year’s event.
“We really enjoyed seeing these school children and their parents out, visiting the bookshops all over Featherston this
year.
“Funding for the voucher scheme was provided anonymously by a local benefactor who is very keen to support the idea of
encouraging children to read for pleasure,” says Gould.
“And our other visitors came from all over, from the Wairarapa, Wellington, Hawke’s Bay, the South Island, as well as
Australia.
“The booksellers, plus two new-book sellers in The ANZAC Hall, all reported their best ever sales for the event, with
the four permanent bookshops now established in Featherston also reporting brisk sales.”
Some 200 attendees were at the now famous Fish and Chip supper on the Friday night at which author, Lloyd Jones, made a
moving address on the values that reading gives to individuals and societies.
Audiences of 50 plus attended the more than 30 events held throughout the town over the two days.
After the hugely successful weekend, Featherston Booktown has begun the process of looking for a new Creative Director
to replace the almost irreplaceable, Kate Mead.
“Kate has been Creative Director for all three of the Booktown Festivals held in the town, and the Trust will find it
hard to replace her.
“There is a strong desire within the community to continue to grow Featherston Booktown as a centre for book collectors,
traders and readers to celebrate the artefact of the book – and not just once a year, but also with other book related
events at other times,” says Gould.
The Booktown Trust will settle on a recruitment process quickly to ensure that planning for 2018 and other events during
the year can begin as soon as possible.
….ends…