In honor of our 20th anniversary, we’re announcing 20 authors who will be featured at this year’s Festival! We’re beyond excited to share a sneak preview of the 2015 author list and unveil some of the literary stars and soon-to-be-stars that will be joining us at the Festival, Oct. 17-18.
Steph Opitz, the Texas Book Festival’s literary director, says: “It’s like a holiday gift list of incredible people. Looking for something for that gourmand friend? Check. Angsty tween who loves comics? Check. A 20-something aspiring poet who’s read it all? Check. The family history buff? Check.”
Without further ado, the 20 Festival authors and their featured books are:
Margaret Atwood – The Heart Goes Last
Chuck Palahniuk – Make Something Up: Stories You Can’t Unread
Elizabeth Strout – The O. Henry Prize Stories 2015: The Best Stories of the Year
Sloane Crosley – The Clasp
Sandra Cisneros – A House of My Own: Stories from My Life
Chip Kidd – Judge This
Adrian Tomine – Killing and Dying
Wendell Pierce – The Wind in the Reeds
Avi with Brian Floca – Old Wolf
Raúl Colón – Draw!
H. W. Brands – Reagan: The Life
Margo Jefferson – Negroland: A Memoir
Alejandro Zambra – My Documents
Attica Locke – Pleasantville
Saeed Jones – Prelude to a Bruise
Linda Gray – The Road to Happiness is Always Under Construction
Aaron Franklin – Franklin Barbecue: A Meat-Smoking Manifesto
Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely – All American Boys
Stephen L. Moore – Texas Rising: The Epic True Story of the Lone Star Republic and the Rise of the Texas Rangers, 1836-1846
Marie Lu – The Rose Society: A Young Elites Novel
The Texas Book Festival is one of the largest and longest-running book festivals in the country. The first Festival took place in November 1996, and since then has grown into one of the nation’s premier literary events with 250-plus authors, 40,000 attendees, live music, kids’ activities, food trucks, book signings and sales, and 100 exhibitors all in and around the State Capitol over two full days. The Festival continues to be free and open to the public.
Without a doubt, this year’s Texas Book Festival will be truly impressive. And rightfully so, since it’s our 20th anniversary year.
We’ll unveil the entire lineup of more than 250 authors as the Festival draws closer. Until then, tweet us at @texasbookfest and follow us on Facebook and let us know which authors from the preview list you’re most excited about seeing.