Author Pavilions
More than 80 popular American authors will be making presentations on the National Mall throughout the day in author pavilions devoted to Children, Teens & Children, Fiction & Fantasy, Mysteries & Thrillers, History & Biography, Home & Family, and Poetry.
Library of Congress Pavilion
Creativity Across America
Experience the cultural treasures housed in the Library's vast online collections, and discover the depth, complexity and diversity of American creativity. Use touch-screen computer kiosks to see, hear and interact with the Library's award-winning web site, featuring more than 10 million digitized items from its collections including music, prints and photographs, motion pictures and sound recordings.
Come to the Kids' Zone where interactive games bring to life the intriguing stories and objects that make up America's creative fabric. Meet Library of Congress experts for a guided insider's tour of online collections. Learn how the Copyright Office can help you protect your own work. Pick up buttons, bookmarks, literature and other giveaways highlighting the Library's role as the mint record of American creativity.
Curatorial Viewpoint
C. Ford Peatross, Library of Congress Curator of Architecture, Design, and Engineering, will be in the pavilion showing visitors how they can again online access to unique drawings and other visual materials featured in his new book, Capital Drawings: Architectural Designs for Washington D.C., from the Library of Congress. The book will be available in the book sales tents on the festival grounds. Please see the site map for tent locations.
Veterans History Project (VHP)
A program of the Library's American Folklife Center, the Library of Congress Veterans History Project is a growing collection of oral histories, memoirs, letters and photographs of personal accounts of war experiences submitted by veterans and civilian supporters. Record your wartime story in this pavilion and become a part of the nation's history, or learn how to participate at a later time.
There will be an unveiling of the VHP's newest book, Forever a Soldier, recording the stories of 37 servicemen and women from its collections. Appearing will be noted author Andrew Carroll, who wrote the book's introduction, and whose own Legacy Project collects letters from service members. Carroll has published selections from them in Behind the Lines and two previous books. Carroll will join Tom Wiener, historian for the Veterans History Project and author of Forever a Soldier, to discuss how they compiled their books and sign copies for festival goers. Wiener will also conduct live interviews with several veterans whose stories are told in Forever a Soldier, and the veterans will be available for book-signing. Both Forever a Soldier and the new paperback edition of the VHP's first book, Voices of War, will be available for sale in the Library of Congress pavilion.
Veteran Interviews
11 a.m. — DENTON & JEAN-MARIE CROCKER
Denton Crocker is a veteran of World War II. His story of service in the Pacific Theater, drawn from his memoir, My War Against Mosquitos, was told in Voices of War. His wife, Jean-Marie, wrote a memoir of their eldest son, Denton Jr., titled Son of the Cold War. Denton Crocker Jr. enlisted in the Army in 1965 and was serving in Vietnam when he was killed in combat on his 19th birthday in June 1966. His story is told in Forever a Soldier.
1 p.m. — ANDREW CARROLL
Andrew Carroll is the author of three best-selling books of history: War Letters, In Our Own Words, and Letters of a Nation. His latest book is Behind the Lines: Powerful and Revealing American and Foreign War Letters - and One Man's Search to Find Them. He wrote the introduction to Forever a Soldier; he and author Tom Wiener will talk about their experiences in dealing with veterans' accounts of their wartime experiences.
3 p.m. — NORMAN IKARI AND YEIICHI KELLY KUWAYAMA
Mr. Ikari and Mr. Kuwayama are veterans of World War II. When they served with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a unit composed of Japanese-American men, many of whose families were interned during the war by the U.S. government. The 442nd, nicknamed "Go for Broke", fought in Italy and France and became the most decorated unit of its size in American military history. These two soldiers met on the battlefield, when Mr. Kuwayama, a medic, tended to Mr. Ikari after he was shot in his legs. Their stories are each told in Forever a Soldier.
Pavilion of the States
Visit Your Home and State
Come to the popular Pavilion of the States to learn about the reading and literacy promotion projects as well as the literary traditions of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories. Representatives from throughout the nation will provide information and answer questions about their state's writers, libraries, book festivals, book awards and reading promotion activities. In addition, several authors will be dropping by their state's table during the day.
Collect every sticker and stamp
A popular feature, especially among young readers, and their families, is a free map of the United States that can be presented at each table for an appropriate state sticker or stamp. The map also includes a reading list of books for young people nominated by each state.
The Pavilion of the States is organized by the Library's Center for the Book, which will be distributing brochures and information about its reading promotion activities. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is the major pavilion sponsor, with additional funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).
First Book
First Book, a nonprofit organization which gives children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books, will be located near the Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama tables in the Pavilion of the States. First Book is launching a campaign to place more than five million books into the hands of children and families displaced by Hurricane Katrina. These resources will also be used to support schools, libraries and other educational facilities devastated by the hurricane. First Book is a reading promotion partner of the Library's Center for the Book.
Book Sales Pavilion
There will be two sales pavilions on the Festival grounds with identical inventories of selected books by 2005 National Book Festival Authors. Come visit and browse before going to book signing areas for your favorite authors.
Let's Read America Pavilion
TARGET
Along with the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, Target sponsors the Letters About Literature program for readers in grades 4 through 12. To enter, readers write a personal letter to an author, past or present, explaining how that author’s work changed their way of thinking about the world or themselves. For details on Letters About Literature visit the Target area in the Let’s Read America Pavilion.
Visitors will also enjoy taking photos in the Target Big Red Chair. Measuring almost 5 feet wide, the Big Red Chair is the symbol for Ready. Sit. Read!, a national reading program created by Target in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education. Ready. Sit. Read! was developed to encourage a lifelong love of reading early in children’s lives. In addition to sponsorship of Letters About Literature, Ready. Sit. Read! includes a partnership with the national nonprofit organization Reach Out and Read, an online parent/child book club, word puzzles for children and sponsorship of book festivals across the country.
Target gives back more than $2 million a week to communities across America through grants and programs that focus on education, the arts and social services. Target is proud to be the Distinguished Benefactor of the 2005 National Book Festival.
AT&T
AT&T invites you to join Dipper, the AT&T CARES star, in the Let’s Read America Pavilion. AT&T CARES is AT&T’s employee involvement program, which encourages all employees and retirees to volunteer with local nonprofit organizations and schools. In addition to providing time off to volunteer, the AT&T Foundation provides grants to the organizations where employees and retirees volunteer.
In the Let’s Read America Pavilion, you’ll have a chance to meet some of AT&T’s literacy volunteers, pick up a souvenir, and pose for a photo with Dipper. You can also enter your local public or school library to receive a grant from the AT&T Foundation. Applications will be available in the Let’s Read America Pavilion, and awards will be announced later in the day.
The 2005 National Book Festival marks AT&T’s fifth year as a Charter Sponsor. AT&T is proud to partner with the Library of Congress in this celebration of reading.
Educate, Inc.
Bring your kids to the Hooked on Phonics section of the Let’s Read America Pavilion to meet Pop Fox and Hip-O. They will be on hand to entertain children and hand out gifts and prizes, including colorful backpacks for school, and Hooked on Phonics companion books. Kids can also play the HOP-scotch reading game and show off their reading skills. Hooked on Phonics is operated by HOP LLC, a division of Educate, Inc., a proud sponsor of the National Book Festival. For more information visit www.hookedonphonics.com.
Half Price Books
To promote family literacy, Half Price Books (www.halfpricebooks.com) is launching the 11th edition of its children’s storybook “Say Good Night to Illiteracy” at 2 p.m. in the Let’s Read America Pavilion. Half Price Books will provide complimentary copies of the book to children, while supplies last. Great for the entire family, this colorful bedtime storybook, which supports literacy groups across the country, contains 20 original stories and poems that are paired with specially commissioned illustrations. Also, stop by throughout the day for stickers, pencils, bookmarks, and to meet BW, the Half Price Books Bookworm. Half Price Books is a sponsor of the 2005 National Book Festival.
PBS
Grow with PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO! Teachers, parents, kids and caregivers won’t want to miss visiting Let’s Read America Pavilion featuring PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO!...and a new addition, PBS Parents. PBS will offer creative and resourceful handouts to help you and your children get the most out of PBS’ educational children’s programming as well as the always popular free Polaroids with favorite PBS KIDS characters like Arthur and Clifford the Big Red Dog.
Created with a variety of experts in child development and education, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education, PBS Parents (pbsparents.org) is a comprehensive parents’ guide giving tips on everything from early childhood development to communicating with kids. It provides parents the tools they need to help prepare kids for school and continue the learning process once they’ve started. Log onto pbsparents.org for the PBS Parents Bookfinder, PBS Parents Guides (Talking with Kids, Early Math, Creativity, Going to School, Children and Media, and even Birthday Party Planning) and age-appropriate PBS KIDS Activities Search.
Penguin Group (USA)/Pearson-Jumpstart Partnership
Don’t miss the Pearson area with Penguin Group (USA) and Jumpstart for Young Children exhibits where you can learn the most effective way to read to kids; have your photo taken with our life-size Penguin; as well as participate in various learning activities and craft projects including one-to-one reading, making book markers, and story-time with the Penguin! There will be reading method demonstrations and group readings — all immediately followed by literacy-based activities and photos with the Penguin.
Demonstration Times
10:00 - 10:30 AM
11:30 - 12:00 Noon
3:00 - 3:30 PM
Scholastic, Inc.
Lee y serás presents José-Luis Orozco, children’s author and recording artist, who regularly performs for children in schools, libraries and concert halls throughout the United States and Latin America. Orozco delivers an energetic and interactive journey through Latin American culture, history and oral traditions in English and Spanish. His music combines rhymes, movements and rhythm with information as the audience is invited to join him in singing, dancing and acting out songs throughout his entire show. This performance will be a part of the launch of Lee y serás, a national Latino early literacy initiative created by Scholastic, National Council of La Raza and Verizon.
Performance Times
11:00 - 11:30 AM
1:00 - 1:30 PM
4:00 - 4:30 PM