30th annual Virginia Festival of the Book planned March 20-24

The Virginia Festival of the Book, a program of Virginia Humanities, is preparing for its 30th annual event, which will bring together writers and readers to promote and celebrate books, reading, literacy, and literary culture. The event will take place March 20-24 in Charlottesville.

“We’re pulling out all the stops when it comes to celebrating our 30th anniversary,” said festival director Kalela Williams. “We’re starting with a 90s themed rooftop party featuring Rob Harvilla, author of 60 Songs that Explain the ‘90s, and concluding with a toast at Decipher Brewing. But the big 30th celebration everyone is talking about is Wordy Thirty.”

Wordy Thirty is a gala celebration taking place at The Bradbury and Vault Virginia on Charlottesville’s downtown mall on Saturday, March 23. The gala includes food, drinks, dancing, and a celebration of three decades of festival memories. Three different tickets each come with a different party experience.

“We’ll have a DJ; poets writing in real time on typewriters; a special signing salon with headliners Roxanne Gay, Jeannette Walls, Adriana Trigiani, and U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón; a special VIP lounge; and much more,” Williams said.

The festival schedule includes more than 80 events featuring 130 authors. The majority of events are free and open to the public. A small number of signature events require tickets, including Wordy Thirty.

Details on all 2024 Virginia Festival of the Book events are available at VaBook.org.