I’ll admit right from the top that I am biased because I am the Festival Director of the Louisville Book Festival, but I seized the opportunity to work with the organization after interviewing its founder for LEO Weekly in 2021, and I believe that the Louisville Book Festival is one of the best events in Louisville.
First, and foremost, I am a huge reader. My mom regularly took me to the public library as a child where I routinely checked out stacks of books almost as tall as I was. She tried to ban me from bringing books to the dinner table, but I would read aloud anything that happened to be sitting there — cereal boxes, salad dressing bottles, you name it — until she gave up and just let me have my book so she could have a little peace. As an adult, I’ve started quirky, unattainable challenges like trying to read all the fiction books at the neighborhood branch alphabetically by author; spoiler alert, I never made it out of the A’s, but I enjoyed trying.
One of the best things about attempting that challenge is that I read stories that I never would have encountered without the rules I set for myself. There were stories I read that I would have skipped over for not having an interesting cover, or because the description didn’t really lure me in. In those stories I found different lifestyles, characters, experiences, and worldviews so different from my own and I love how that’s helped shape and reframe my interaction with society.
For two days in October, the Louisville Book Festival wants to do that for its attendees as well. We celebrate literacy and the joy of reading all while recognizing that, in the state of Kentucky, our literacy rates leave much to be desired. We want to reach people and show them that reading is a fundamental human right, that there are authors writing stories about people just like them, and that finding the right book can truly be the small step that changes someone’s life. We recognize that for far too long many children haven’t seen themselves represented in the pages of the books they are assigned for school, or have available to them — if they even have books available to them at all.
We strive to put together the most diverse line up of authors, genres, and presentations that we can, so that hopefully everyone can see themselves represented while at the festival. We host school field trips so that students can interact with and learn from authors about their journeys, and leave inspired to achieve big things in their own futures. Most importantly, we allow every youth attending the festival to leave with a book of their own choosing.
Reading can truly change someone’s life, and we want to be part of that experience. Through presentations about the art and craft of writing, the authors’ reflections on their processes and the resulting publications, and conversations about important topics like wage parity, reparations, and how big tech is shaping our world, the 2024 Louisville Book Festival is a must attend event. Best of all, the event is free and open to the public! Oct. 18 and 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. I hope to see you there!
