Words in Winter Series 2020
Featherston Booktown is back! Having been forced to postpone the Featherston Booktown Karukatea 2020 Festival in May, Featherston Booktown is returning with a roar, with a series of drawcard literary events dubbed "Words in Winter" from June through to August in Featherston.
What's a Booktown?
Booktowns are an international phenomenon, celebrating books, from their stories through to their paper, glue and ink. Featherston is now a fully-fledged, internationally recognised Booktown.
Stay up-to-date
Keep an eye on our Facebook page for news and updates for the upcoming Featherston Booktown events throughout the year.
Featherston Booktown Karukatea
Two cultures share our wonderful country – and region – and, at Featherston Booktown, we seek to recognise and bring that to life. After consulting Mana Whenua, we are proud to reveal the Te Reo expression of Featherston Booktown.
Karukatea means “the clear and observant eye” – with karu the word for “eye” and katea meaning “clarity”. The word takes in the narrative of our region (Wairarapa Moana being one eye of the fish and Wellington Harbour being the other eye of Māui’s fish). On a deeper level, the word also captures the concept of people seeking knowledge and clarity.
Our sincere thanks to Liz Mellish and Robin Potangaroa (Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa) for their help and guidance through the process of finding an appropriate Te Reo expression of Featherston Booktown.
Alex The Quartet by Tessa Duder
Prepare to be inspired! Juanita McLellan, charismatic Drama senior teacher at Kuranui College, reads from one of her favourite stories, Alex, Book one of the Alex Quartet, written by Tessa Duder and published by OneTree House Publishers, Auckland. Our sincere thanks to Tessa Duder and Christine Dale at OneTree House for permission to read Tessa’s book online.