So, what is a Booktown?
A Booktown is a small rural town or village, close to major cities, in which second-hand and antiquarian bookshops are
concentrated. Most Booktowns have developed in villages of historic interest or of scenic beauty. Their residents set up events
around books – selling them, writing, reading, illustrating, printing, making and publishing them.
Local Featherstonian, Lincoln Gould, who had spent a decade as the CEO of Booksellers New Zealand, first floated the idea
of becoming a Booktown, feeling it would benefit the town. After suggesting it to Mary and Peter Biggs, bookshop owner Kate
Mead and other locals, he visited the Clunes Booktown festival in Victoria twice to see how it was done. On the second trip, Mary, Peter (Biggsy), Kate and her husband accompanied him. Once back home in Featherston, they formed a charitable trust,
with seed funding from the Biggs’s and others, and in 2015 the inaugural Booktown festival was held.
