The Wisconsin Book Festival kicks off Wednesday, Oct. 22, and will run through Sunday, Oct. 26, hosting a wide range of events for every reader. Among these events will be book signings, readings, exhibits, discussions, contests and storytelling. Many local venues, including bookstores, libraries and theaters are becoming involved by hosting these events, all of which are free and open to the public.
Tara Mathison, events manager at Canterbury Bookstore, 315 W. Gorham St., who helped organize the event, said she hopes this event will be as successful as last year's festival, although it may be more difficult to follow in the shadow of such an enormous success.
\It's kind of easier to start an entire book festival versus following such a great first festival,"" she said.
A wide range of presenters will be in attendance. Among the many critically acclaimed fiction writers are Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of
The New York Times bestseller ""The Deep End of the Ocean,"" the novel that is lauded for launching Oprah's Book Club. Mitchard will be presenting Friday, Oct. 22 from 6 to 9 p.m. at Club Majestic, 115 King St.
Tim O'Brien, author of ""The Things They Carried,"" read at the festival last year, and will return this year for various events taking place all day Friday, Oct. 22 at the Monona Public Library, 1000 Nichols Road.
Several former Madison residents will also be reading at the festival, including Dan Savage, author of the syndicated sex-advice column ""Savage Love,"" which appears locally in The Onion, a spoof-newspaper founded by former journalists from the Madison area. Savage will be reading Saturday Oct. 23 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Orpheum Main Stage, 216 State St.
Another former Madisonian, John Roach, will present Oct. 25 from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Madison Public Library, 201 W. Mifflin St. Roach is the author of the new book ""Way Out Here in the Middle,"" and co-writer of the screenplay ""The Straight Story.""
Allison Jones Chaim, festival director of the Wisconsin Humanities Council, said she is very excited about the event. Chaim said planning the event has required an enormous amount of time, but now with the festival so close, nervous anticipation is building as fast as the excitement.
""We are practically on the eve of the festival now; we are looking so forward to enjoying the festivities,"" Chaim said.
In addition to Poet Laureate Billy Collins, other poets to read include African American artist Fabu, who will present at 1 and 3 p.m. Oct. 24 at the Pyle Center and Oct. 25 at Bartell Theatre, 113 E. Mifflin St. Rusty Russel, coordinator and emcee of the Cheapatany Price/Poets Without Borders Open Mic & Slam in Madison, will present Oct. 23 at the Elvehjem Museum and Oct. 25 at Bartell Theatre.
Ben Sidran, writer of the Steve Miller song ""Space Cowboy"" and host of NPR's ""Jazz Alive"" and VH-1's ""New Visions"" series is also scheduled to present, as is Steve Hagen, bestselling author of ""Buddhism, Plain and Simple."" He will read from his new book, ""Buddhism is Not What You Think,"" Wednesday, Oct. 22 at 4 p.m. in the Red Gym.
Tilney Marsh, associate director for the Wisconsin Book Festival, said this free event is a great way for people to enjoy a lot of entertainment and exposure to the arts.
""In this town, [people] are often students who have no money or make 'Madison wages,' which are [very little], so this is a great opportunity to soak in some really excellent literary culture for free,"" Marsh said.
This event is being partnered with CineFest Nuestra America, a Latino film festival running several events in Madison through Oct. 26.
""We are partnering to bring some of the best Latino authors and artists to Madison for some very exciting, collaborative, events."" Marsh said.
More information on the schedule of events for the festival can be found at
