Louisiana Book Festival preview: Organizers say there’s something for everyone

Book talks with writers from around the country and the South, along with a full slate of children’s activities, are part of the massive lineup for this weekend’s Louisiana Book Festival, taking place Nov. 1 in downtown Baton Rouge from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

One of the region’s most popular fall events and a top regional literary festival, the free and open-to-the-public gathering first launched in 2006 and now attracts about 20,000 book enthusiasts annually.

“What I always hear from people about the Book Festival is that they don’t have time to get to everything they want to see,” says Robert Wilson, Director of the Louisiana Center for the Book and the Louisiana Book Festival. “It’s kind of like Jazz Fest in that way. You just have to pick.”

Indeed, like the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, the Louisiana Book Festival releases a grid of simultaneous sessions taking place across the festival complex.

Regulars will see that, unlike in the past, programming will not take place this year in the State Capitol due to the Special Session. Additional tents on the Capitol Park grounds near the State Library and Capitol Park Museum will replace them, Wilson says.

Along with literary heavyweights like Wally Lamb and Robert Olen Butler, the festival draws a deep bench of regional talent for thought-provoking panel discussions, book signings and plenty of engaging events aimed at kids and young readers.

Highlights of this year’s Louisiana Book Festival include:

Cooking Demos

Four sessions will take place in the Cooking Demo Tent, including a conversation and demonstration with Marcelle Bienvenu, author of the Louisiana classic Who’s Your Mama, Are You Catholic, and Can You Make a Roux? Baton Rouge chef Celeste Gill will also be on hand for a demo and talk as she promotes her cookbook Chef Celeste’s Louisiana Kitchen: Simplifying Cajun and Creole Cuisine, released in September by LSU Press.

Panel discussions aplenty

Dozens of authors and writers will participate in panel discussions throughout the day across a wide variety of topics and literary genres, from ghost stories and true crime to sci-fi and Louisiana history. Locations and times vary.

One Book, One Festival

Since 2008, the Louisiana Book Festival has held a scholar-led discussion on a notable Southern literary work that attendees are invited to read prior to the event. This year, the One Book, One Festival selection is a trio of Kate Chopin short stories, “At the ‘Cadien Ball,” “La Belle Zoraide” and “Athenaise.” Southern literature expert and University of Mary Washington Professor of English Gary Richards returns once again to lead the discussion in the North Tent at 9 a.m.

Louisiana Writer Award

Each year, the Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana bestows the Louisiana Writer Award, which “recognizes outstanding contributions to Louisiana’s literary and intellectual life exemplified by a contemporary Louisiana writer’s body of work.” This year’s recipient is poet Julie Kane, an accomplished, nationally recognized poet who has lived and worked in Louisiana since relocating to the Bayou State from Boston nearly 50 years ago. It will take place on the first floor of the State Library at noon.

Louisiana Readers’ Choice award ceremonies

Young readers, this one’s for you. Before the festival, kids across the state have a chance to read books from curated reading lists and vote on their favorites as part of the Louisiana Readers’ Choice program. Winners are acknowledged at the Book Festival.

This year’s honorees are Acorn Was a Little Wild by Jen Arena (K-2); The Gardener of Alcatraz: A True Story by Emma Bland Smith (3-5); Swim Team: A Graphic Novel by Johnnie Christmas (6-8); and The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas (9-12).

Along with the 9 a.m. awards ceremony in Author Tent D, fans can enjoy a reading with Arena in the Children’s Authors Tent at 11 a.m. Then, catch Christmas, whose book is also a National Book Award Finalist, in a panel discussion on middle-grade graphic novels at 10:30 a.m. in Author Tent D.

State Library Centennial Celebration

The Louisiana State Library turns 100 this year, a milestone that will be recognized by Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser, retired state librarian Thomas F. Jaques and current state librarian Meg Placke on the State Library front steps at 9 a.m.

Food trucks will also be on hand at this year’s festival. Free parking is available in the Galvez Garage. For more information, visit louisianabookfestival.org.