The National Book Festival is almost here!
The festival is totally, utterly, completely free and runs on the mall in Washington, D.C., for both days this weekend: Saturday, Sept. 22, from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 23, from 12 noon to 5:30 p.m.
If you are close enough to Washington to attend, Saturday looks to be particularly intriguing for educators and librarians. A Pavilion of the States will be set up so that literacy organizations from all 50 states and the major U.S. territories can share their their local programs and authors.
If you live too far away to attend, or want more if you can attend, the library has created author podcasts that they’ve been adding to the festival’s site as the countdown to this weekend continues. The podcasts include one-on-one chats with authors that will be featured at the festival, including such well-known people as R.L. Stine, of Goosebumps fame, and Walter Isaacson, president and CEO of the Aspen Institute, chairman of the board for Teach For America, and author of—most recently—a biography on Steve Jobs. The podcasts could certainly make for interesting conversation pieces in the classroom.