(MORRISTOWN, NJ) -- The top literary event in the tri-state area, the Morristown Festival of Books returns Friday, October 18th, and Saturday, October 19th, in historic downtown Morristown with something for readers of all ages and tastes.
The keynote event kicks things off on Friday night, followed by the all-day, free Main Festival on Saturday, October 19th, featuring more than 100 best-selling, critically acclaimed, and award-winning fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and children’s authors who will be speaking to audiences and signing their books.
The not-to-be-missed keynote event features Fareed Zakaria, host of CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS, journalist, and celebrated author, speaking about his latest New York Times best seller, Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present. The keynote will be held at the Mayo Performing Arts Center and tickets are on sale at morristownbooks.org or by phone at 973-539-8008.
Saturday’s Main Festival events are free to the public, thanks to our generous sponsors and donors. The author roster includes some of today’s hottest names, such as novelists Essie Chambers (Swift River), Jean Hanff Korelitz (The Sequel), Peter Swanson (A Talent for Murder), Jamie Brenner (A Novel Summer), Marjan Kamali (The Lion Women of Tehran), Rob Hart (Assassins Anonymous), and Kimberly McCreight (Like Mother Like Daughter); journalists Kevin Baker (The New York Game: Baseball and the Rise of a New City) and Jonathan Turley (The Indispensable Right); cookbook author and Bravo personality Caroline Manzo (Food and Other Things I Love: More than 100 Italian American Recipes from My Home to Yours; and nonfiction writers Dr. Sharon Malone (Grown Women Talk), Ed O’Keefe (The Loves of Theodore Roosevelt), Tessa West (Job Therapy), Roger Thurow (Against the Grain), and Edward Wong (At the Age of Empire).
Young readers will enjoy the ever-popular KidFest featuring dozens of outstanding children’s authors and illustrators who will be present from 11:00am to 4:00pm on Saturday (rain or shine) to meet visitors while selling and personally signing books. There will be a special appearance by the author of the beloved Magic Tree House series, Mary Pope Osborne, along with dozens of children’s favorites, including Chris & J.J. Grabenstein, Sophie Blackall, Alyssa Capucilli, Dave Roman, Dan Yaccarino, and Beth Ferry. For YA readers, there will be two panels with several fan-favorite authors! KidFest truly has something for every young reader – favorite picture books, chapter books, middle grade offerings, and more!
The authors will speak and answer questions at several locales, all within walking distance of each other along South Street in historic Morristown, including St. Peter’s Church Sanctuary and Parish House, The Church of the Redeemer, and the Morristown/Morris Township Library. Book sales and signings will occur at a tent on the grounds of the historic Vail Mansion. To see the complete author roster, visit morristownbooks.org.
Maya Feller, Pat Kennedy-Grant, Stacey Mei Yan Fong
Their Keynote event is generously co-sponsored by the Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation and Delta Dental. J.P. Morgan is our Special Event sponsor and KidFest is generously sponsored by Atlantic Health System/Morristown Memorial Hospital. Proceeds from their annual fundraising Keynote Event and book sales throughout the Festival contribute to supporting literacy and education in our community, this year through a partnership with Literacy Volunteers of Morris County and the Morris Educational Foundation. This revenue, along with the generosity of their sponsors, helps keep the Saturday book festival free and open to all.
Morristown Festival of Books is a fund of the Community Foundation of New Jersey, a non-profit corporation.
