Maggie Knaus on the Rockcliffe Bookfair
The Rockcliffe Book Fair is one of the oldest, biggest, best used book sales in Ontario, if not Canada. Book dealers travel across the country every year to cash in on the great deals. More than 3500 volunteer hours go into the making of it annually (600 for the full year, let alone one event is, apparently, considered impressive when it comes to parental involvement in school activities). Twenty six thousand books were sold last year, with the same number left over.
Book Fair is organized with well co-ordinated precision (I wont say military) and good humour. It takes place during the first week of November each year, and always comes off top notch. Too bad the people behind it (most of them are women) don’t run the country. Maggie Knaus, an exuberant book-lover, mother of two and professional photographer was the ideal choice to chair the 2006 Fair.
I spoke with her about the mammoth task.