When and Where: This year’s event will be from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday on the National Mall in Washington between Seventh and 14th streets NW. The event is rain or shine.
Cost: Free
Authors at the 2009 National Book Festival: The festival provides access to more than 70 award-winning authors, illustrators and poets, including: John Grisham, Judy Blume, Ken Burns, John Irving, Walter Mosley, Paula Deen, Nicholas Sparks, Jodi Picoult, Jon Scieszka, Gwen Ifill, Julia Alvarez, David Baldacci, Junot Diaz, James Swanson and Poet Laureate Kay Ryan.
The artist for this year’s festival poster is noted author and artist Charles Santore of Philadelphia.
Festival Pavilions: Pavilions include children, teens and children, history and biography, fiction and fantasy, mysteries and thrillers, and poetry and prose. The Pavilion of the States will represent reading and library promotion programs and literary events in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the United States trusts and territories. The popular Let’s Read America pavilion will offer reading activities that are fun for the whole family.
Festival-goers may have books signed by their favorite authors and hear them speak about their works. Children will be greeted by storybook and television characters who will be on the festival grounds throughout the day.
New Features: The 2009 National Book Festival will incorporate several new social networking features, including Twitter (twitter.com/librarycongress), to more actively engage festival-goers and help them receive the latest festival news, schedules and other information.
National Book Festival Young Readers’ Online Toolkit, Podcasts: The 2009 National Book Festival Young Readers’ Online Toolkit, which will debut in the next few weeks (loc.gov/bookfest), will bring the festival into libraries, schools and homes across the country. The toolkit will feature information about National Book Festival authors who write for children and teens, podcasts of their readings, teaching tools, and activities for kids. This interactive resource also will show educators, parents and children how they can host their own book festival.
Available again this year will be downloadable podcasts of interviews with popular participating authors as well as online chats. The Library of Congress also will present same-day coverage of many of the morning presentations on its Web site.
Visit loc.gov/bookfest for information.
