The Friends as the Minnesota Center for the Book is headed to the (virtual) National Festival
Each year, The Friends as the Minnesota Center for the Book participates in the Library of Congress National Book Festival. This year, the 20th annual festival will be held online September 25 – 27, and we’ll be there too!
As part of the festival, every state chooses one book as their State Read. The Friends designates that year’s Minnesota Book Award winner in the Children’s Literature category, which means that this year our Minnesota State Read is A Map Into the World by Kao Kalia Yang. You can watch Kalia reading from her award-winning book here or check out a brief interview in which she explores her inspiration here.
The Friends will have information on Kalia and much more in our interactive booth as part of the festival’s Roadmap to Reading. To visit us virtually, register for the festival here, then check out our booth! We look forward to “seeing” you there!
Other renowned Minnesota writers are also appearing at the festival this year. Follow the links to check out their program dates and times:
Kate DiCamillo, author of Stella Endicott and the Anything-Is-Possible Poem
Marlon James, author of Black Leopard, Red Wolf
Danez Smith, author of Homie
Gene Luen Yang, author of Dragon Hoops
For up-to-the-minute updates on the festival schedule and activities, visit the festival blog and subscribe.
About the Minnesota Center for the Book
The Friends is the Center for the Book in Minnesota, designated by the Library of Congress. The Center for the Book is a national initiative established in 1977 to promote reading, literacy, libraries, as well as the scholarly study of books.
All 50 states, plus the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, have a designated Center for the Book. The Friends was honored with this distinction largely because of the success of our statewide programs, including the Minnesota Book Awards. As Minnesota’s Center for the Book, The Friends produces dynamic programming that benefits all ages and reaches all corners of the state, including Letters About Literature; Minnesota Book Awards; Minnesota Writers Directory; Minnesota Writers on the Map; Moving Words: Writers Across Minnesota; and One Book | One Minnesota.