"We've done particularly well in some of the rarer books about Maori this year,'' Regent Theatre Trust chairwoman and book sale co-ordinator Alison Cunningham said.
Featured prominently on a table devoted to New Zealand tomes were titles such as Maori Rugby 1884-1979 and The Lore and History of the South Island Maori.
This second volume was priced at $65 while other prices for the rare books on this Aotearoa-themed table ranged over $100.
Setting prices for rare books was an "art, not a science'', Mrs Cunningham said, and involved using the book sale team's knowledge, advice from local book collectors and prices from online resellers.
Asked why she thought people brought their books to the sale, Mrs Cunningham said it was often because of changes in circumstances.
"A lot of what we get is people downsizing out of big houses into small houses. We get a lot of bequests after people have died.''
There were also regular contributors to the annual sale.
"We definitely have people from whom we collect books every year.''
Besides the rare New Zealand materials, a wide selection of sporting books, cookbooks, novels and more will be on offer. Most were priced affordably.
Many will be on sale for just $1.
An appealing feature of the sale was the wide time span covered in the final collection, Mrs Cunningham said.
"It's not just what's out now, it's what's been out for 50 years.''
Each box of books covering diverse interests was "a voyage of discovery'', Mrs Cunningham said.
The Star Regent 24-hour Book Sale will be held at the Regent Theatre from noon on Friday, June 10, until noon on Saturday, June 11.
