Boston Book Festival Slated for October

By Judith Rosen -- Publishers Weekly, 5/4/2009 9:05:00 AM

The city that was once home to Hawthorne, Longfellow, Emerson and Wheatley is hoping to join the ranks of other major communities with vibrant book festivals by launching a festival of its own presented by State Street Corporation. The Boston Book Festival, which will be free and open to the public, will take place in downtown Boston on Saturday October 24 and is the first of what festival organizers plan to make an annual event.

BBF, which is headed by president Deborah Z. Porter and executive director Emily D’Amour Pardo, formerly with Books and Books in Florida, has lined up a veritable who’s who of local writers, editors and publishers to participate on the board and to serve as literary and technology advisers. Among them are: Tom Perrotta, Ike Williams, Sue Miller, Janet Silver, Helene Atwan, Andre Dubus III and Nicholas Negraponte. The festival also has the support of area publishers and bookstores, including Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Hachette Book Group, E-Ink, Harvard Bookstore, Porter Square Books and Newtonville Books.

A number of panels and events have already been announced on biography, e-books, climate change and sports. Among the writers confirmed to participate are: Ken Burns, Anita Diamant, Elinor Lipman, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Stephen L. Carter and Michael Porter. The venues will include the main branch of the Boston Public Library, the Old South Church, Trinity Church and outdoors in Copley Square.

More information is available at the festival Web site at www.bostonbookfest.org.