Book fairs and festivals are beloved by readers for their vibrant atmosphere and access to a wide array of literature. Writers, too, benefit immensely from these events, gaining opportunities for promotion, sales, and valuable connections with readers, fellow writers, and publishers. Many festivals also host speakers, adding another layer of enrichment.
African American Book Festivals are now found in every major city throughout Texas. Buying Black is more than a trend - it's a necessary way of life!
Here's a look into the history and significance of African American book festivals, with a spotlight on the San Antonio African American Book Festival (SAAABF) and other notable book events across the United States.
The San Antonio African American Book Festival (SAAABF)
The San Antonio African American Book Festival (SAAABF) stands as one of the largest book festivals in South Texas. It is held every year on the Last Saturday of Black History Month at Second Baptist Community Center (3310 E. Commerce Street) right next door to the historic G.W. Carver Branch Library in San Antonio, Texas.
The event is now independently managed by its Founder, so it can continue to exist according to the spirit in which it was created while avoiding any possible Conflicts of Compliance for The Friends of Carver Library. In prior years, the San Antonio African American Book Festival was managed by and funds were generated for the benefit of The Friends of Carver Library.
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The Friends of Carver Library is a member organization of The Friends of the San Antonio Public Library (FoSAPL), a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Organization. In order to guarantee that the Purpose, Vision and Growth of the San Antonio African American Book Festival is not limited or altered,
Literacy improves our lives by expanding the capabilities that reduce poverty by increasing the likelihood of success in educational and career endeavors, which have proven to have positive effects on a community's health and overall quality of life.
Get Involved
If you are interested in being a Participating Author, please select "Become a SAAABF Author" from the menu to learn how you can promote your book(s) with us. If you or your Business/ Organization are interested in being an Official Sponsor of the San Antonio African American Book Festival, please select "Become a SAAABF Sponsor" from the menu to learn how you can invest in promoting Black Literacy. If you are interested in being a Vendor for the San Antonio African American Book Festival, please select "Become a SAAABF Vendor" from the menu to review our current RFQs.
Historical Context
Did you know that Enslaved Africans in Texas were finally freed on June 19, 1865 (Juneteenth) just 158 years ago? Prior to that, it was ILLEGAL for African Americans to read or write and was punishable up to death!
Other Book Festivals and Events
Here's a listing of other book festivals and events across the US:
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- Alabama Book Festival, AL
- Allegheny Regional Festival of Books, PA
- Amelia Island Book Festival, FL
- Ann Katz Festival of Books and Arts, IN
- Baltimore Book Festival, MD
- Bay Area Book Festival, CA
- Bookmarks Festival of Books & Authors, NC
- Books in Boothbay, ME
- Boston Book Festival, MA
- Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair, MA
- Brattleboro Literary Festival, VT
- Brooklyn Book Festival, NY
- Bucks County Book Fest, PA
- California International Antiquarian Book Fair, CA
- Cascadia Poetry Festival, WA
- Central Wisconsin Book Festival, WI
- Chippewa Valley Book Festival, WI
- Cochise Cowboy Poetry & Music Gathering, AZ
- Codex Foundation, CA
- Collingswood Book Festival, NJ
- Deep Valley Book Festival, MN
- Dodge Poetry Festival, NJ
- Evanston Literary Festival, IL
- EWU Presents Get Lit! Festival, WA
- Fall for the Book, VA
- Florida Antiquarian Book Fair, FL
- Fort Collins Book Festival, CO
- Fox Cities Book Festival, WI
- Fredericksburg Independent Book Festival, VA
- Gaithersburg Book Festival, MD
- Granta & Wesleyan Writers Conference, CT
- Great American Book Festival, SD
- Great Valley Bookfest, CA
- Greensboro Bound Literary Festival, NC
- Harbor Springs Festival of the Book, MI
- Harrisburg Book Festival, PA
- Hawai’i Book and Music Festival, HI
- High Desert Book Festival, CA
- History Book Festival, DE
- Iowa City Book Festival & Day in the City of Literature, IA
- Jekyll Island Book Festival, GA
- Kansas Book Festival, KS
- Kentucky Book Festival, KY
- Key West Literary Seminar, FL
- Las Vegas Book Festival, NV
- Lit Fest, CO
- Literary Women, The Long Beach Festival of Authors, CA
- LitFest Pasadena, CA
- Litquake, CA
- Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, CA
- Louisiana Book Festival, LA
- Miami Book Fair International, FL
- Mid-Ohio Indie Author Book Expo, OH
- Mississippi Book Festival, MS
- Nantucket Book Festival, MA
- National Book Festival, DC
- National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, NV
- New Hampshire Book Festival, NH
- New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University, LA
- New York Antiquarian Book Fair, NY
- New York Book Festival, NY
- Northern Arizona Book Festival, AZ
- Ohioana Book Festival, OH
- Orange County Children’s Book Festival, CA
- Pat Conroy Literary Festival, SC
- Payson Book Festival, AZ
- Printers Row Lit Fest, IL
- Rocky Mountain Book and Paper Fair, CO
- Saints and Sinners Literary Festival, LA
- San Antonio Book Festival, TX
- San Diego Writer’s Festival, CA
- San Francisco Book Festival, CA
- Savannah Book Festival, GA
- SC Book Festival, SC
- Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair, WA
- Sheboygan Children’s Book Festival, WI
- Six Bridges Book Festival, AR
- South Dakota Festival of Books, SD
- Southeast Wisconsin Festival of Books, WI
- Southern Festival of Books, TN
- Southern Literary Festival, MS
- Southwest Wisconsin Book Festival, WI
Spotlight on the History Book Festival
The History Book Festival is the first and only book festival in the United States devoted exclusively to history. The 2024 festival promises great discussions with authors of newly published narrative nonfiction and historical fiction.
On Monday, September 30, at 7 PM at the Cape Henlopen High School Theatre HBF hosted a Community Event with Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of The Leadership Journey: How Four Kids Became President (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2024), a book written for middle-grade readers but with appeal to history lovers of all ages.
Doris Kearns Goodwin: Leadership In Turbulent Times
In her first book for young readers, #1 New York Times bestselling author, Pulitzer Prize winner, and leading historian Doris Kearns Goodwin examines the lives of four former presidents - Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, and Lyndon Johnson - beginning when they were young, tracing their unique trajectories and their troubles, trials and triumphs to show how they grew up to become among the finest leaders in our country’s history.
These four presidents came from very different worlds - Lincoln was poor and self-educated; Theodore Roosevelt hailed from an elegant home in the heart of New York City; Franklin Roosevelt loved the outdoors surrounding his family’s rural estate; and Lyndon Johnson’s modest childhood home had no electricity or running water.
For this book aimed at middle-grade students, Goodwin drew inspiration from her bestselling book for adults, Leadership: In Turbulent Times. The Leadership Journey examines how four future presidents cultivated their innate and acquired abilities, with the hope that young readers will see in themselves similar potential and learn how to hone their own leadership qualities.
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The Leadership Journey was illustrated by Amy June Bates.
Spotlight on the New Orleans Book Festival
The mission of the New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University is to support and nurture a literary community by connecting readers of all ages and backgrounds with local and national authors through experiences that celebrate the power of literacy and ideas. The New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University, a major literary event for the Crescent City, will be held on March 27- 29, 2025, on Tulane’s uptown campus and will showcase over 100+ national, regional and local authors, as well as numerous literary exhibitors.
The festival will also feature children’s and family programming sponsored by Scholastic Corporation, the global children’s publishing, education and media company, and the City of New Orleans’ Office of Youth and Families.
Family Day
Family Day at the Fest will take place on Saturday, March 29, 2025 in Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse. Family Day is a family-centered, free event that will feature a full schedule of presentations, activities and entertainment, including author presentations, book readings, book-related activities and book distribution.
Family Day is designed to be a dynamic and fun experience for all ages. A diverse selection of authors and presenters will interact with students and sign books throughout the day. Book characters will walk around the festival grounds creating a lively atmosphere. Children will find something that appeals to all reading levels, backgrounds and reading interests.
Family Day is open and accessible to all children of our community and their families. As part of the Family Day programming, the festival will host outreach programs, including author visits to local schools. To participate in programming, the festival also plans to engage local partners whose mission includes literacy and family-centered initiatives.
History of the Festival
Founded by former New Orleans First Lady Cheryl Landrieu in 2010, the New Orleans Book Festival debuted on the lawn of Milton H. Latter Memorial Library as the inaugural New Orleans Children’s Book Festival. Landrieu partnered with civil rights activist and educator Ruby Bridges in observance of the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of public schools.
Landrieu envisioned a celebration of learning replete with author readings, book giveaways and literacy resources for parents. The New Orleans Book Festival set out to create a free event for the children of New Orleans and their families to celebrate reading. By 2013, it had evolved into an adult and children’s event and had attracted a total of 10,000 attendees and donated 35,000 books to children of the community. The event continued through 2017.
In 2020, Cheryl Landrieu partnered with professor Walter Isaacson and Tulane President Michael A. Fitts to bring the New Orleans Book Festival to Tulane University. In 2022, the festival held its inaugural event on the university’s uptown campus, attracting large crowds with an all-star lineup of over 130 authors.
