Delvin on right page for bookworms

Thousands of book lovers flocked to Delvin last Sunday for the 16th annual Book Festival, and from early in the day satisfied customers could be seen heading off with arms, bags and boxes full of books. There were some 20,000 titles on sale at €1 each in six different outlets in the village.

The festive atmosphere was enhanced greatly by the singing and guitar playing of Ronan Leonard on the square, and later by performances by pupils from schools in the area.

The number of books on offer was well up this year and there was only shuffling space in each of the outlets as the hungry bookworms hunted for treasure.

“History is in the middle, opposite the toilets, but I’d say it’s well savaged by now,” one of the stewards advised a customer. Another who would have been looking for the history section no doubt was Paul Hughes, a native of Delvin who has a PhD in history. “It’s great this year!” Paul enthused as he headed off with an armful of purchases.

One woman from Milltown, Rathconrath, said it was her first time to attend the festival. She was delighted with the great choice on offer she said as she headed off in search of the autobiographies.

A Milltownpass woman said she never misses the date in Delvin – there is something here for everyone, she declared.

Not everyone was looking for just any book; there were some discerning customers there from early on looking for something special. Pat Murphy’s stalls in Gaffney’s pub was a big draw for them.

“In this shop you could find a bit of gold,” he told the Westmeath Examiner. He had just sold a “very rare” hardback Ewoks comic book. “I probably could have got €40 or €50 but I let it go for a fiver,” he remarked.

Pat had “two fellas bidding for Frank Pakenham’s (7th Earl of Longford) book about the treaty” and he confessed that it was worth more than was paid for it.

“I sort of know the connoisseurs now; I have them in at the start, grabbing what they want and then gone. This is the haggle shop,” he joked. As we spoke, a woman approached looking for “the mystic poet AE Russell who inspired Yeats”.

Pat recalled how the whole idea of the book festival was born over a few pints in Gaffney’s lounge. He estimated that more than 3,000 people would attend this year’s festival.

Pat is originally from Mullingar but he moved to Delvin nearly half a century ago. When he retired in late 2019, he decided to help out with the book festival.

“We get about 30,000 books, all of which have to be gone through and checked before they are approved for sale,” Pat said.

He remarked that the event involves a lot of work for the money it brings in, “but it’s all profit”. The proceeds go towards the maintenance of the Delvin Sports and Leisure Centre. “We are doing a sensory garden out there and the money will go to that,” he said.

Marie Grassick, with the help of Katie Cross and Hans from South Africa, all of whom are book lovers, sort through all the books in a container at the leisure centre. “We take the month of May off and then start in June,” Marie said.

First they cull the books, weeding out any that are not fit for resale. Then they sort them into fiction and non-fiction, and then into the different genres.

They get books from many libraries. This year the Meath libraries gave them 5,500 usable books. Individuals donated another 3,500. Marie said people can donate books all year round by contacting the organisers at delvinbookfest@gmail.com.

She said the biggest job is setting up the stalls in the six locations, “but the volunteers have been doing it so long now it is a well-oiled machine”.

There are about 15 volunteers involved in running the event. Among them is Myles O’Neill who was on duty at the plant stall this year. Myles works on the Community Employment Scheme in Delvin and is currently involved in restoring an enclosed garden that had fallen into disuse. “We are thankful for all hands on deck,” he said.