Rotary Club's Monster Book Fair set to kick off on Thursday

Close to 40,000 books will be for sale at the Monster Book Fair on Victoria Ave. Photo / Supplied

The Whanganui Rotary Club's annual Monster Book Fair is set to start on Thursday in the old Farmers building at 131 Victoria Ave.

Stuart Hylton of Whanganui Rotary Club said the fair had been planned for Easter, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic it has only now been given the go-ahead.

"All money from it goes to community projects in Whanganui, and hopefully we will have a post-Covid-19 theme to funds this year, with help going to those most in need," Hylton said.

"Our books are legacy books from previous fairs, old library books, and ones we collect throughout the year from various people and organisations.

"Every year we let people know that we're having a fair and they can ring us.

"From there we can then go and pick up books, catalogue them and sell them."

Hylton said the book fair seemed to "grow an extra leg each year", with some books being read, brought back and resold.

"There's a bit of recycling going on and books seem to be doing the rounds, which is great.

"There's a whole lot on offer, from fiction and non-fiction through to comics and jigsaws.

"To people who are familiar with it it'll be the same, but bigger, with around 40,000 books for sale this year."

A raffle to raise money for Wellington Children's Hospital would also be running throughout the book fair, Hylton said.

"Those tickets will be available at the fair, with prizes being travel vouchers of various values.

"Domestic travel would definitely be the way to go for the moment, for obvious reasons."

Hylton said "face-to-face" Rotary Club meetings had resumed yesterday at the Kingsgate Hotel on Victoria Ave.

Whanganui Rotary Club's Monster Book Fair at 131 Victoria Ave runs from 9am on Thursday, June 11 to Sunday, June 14, and again from June 19-21.