On Saturday, October 12, the 7th annual Books by the Banks: Cincinnati USA Book Festival will take place at Duke Energy Convention Center from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Once again, UC Libraries is an organizing partner of the literary event that allows readers to meet and greet favorite authors.
The day-long festival will feature over 100 regional and national authors, book signings, author panels, and activities for the entire family to enjoy. New this year is a Writing/Getting Published series of panels. All events are free and open to the public.
At the festival, attendees will have the opportunity to meet authors and to purchase signed copies of their books. Books by the Banks features writers in various categories including fiction, non-fiction, cooking, children’s literature, local travel, sports, and more. Nationally known authors such as Stuart Woods, R.J. Palacio, Maria Semple, James McBride, and Bob Shea will join local favorites Will Hillenbrand, Michael Keating, and Barbara and David Day to celebrate the joy and reading of books.
Leah Stewart, associate professor and area director of creative writing in the McMicken College of Arts and Sciences, will be among the 100+ authors at the festival. Stewart is the author of the novels The History of Us, Husband and Wife, The Myth of You and Me, and Body of a Girl. In The History of Us, the newest novel by the celebrated author, three grown siblings return to their childhood home and face a family secret that forces them to reexamine their relationships to each other and to the aunt who took them in as children. Also from UC, staff from The Cincinnati Review will be at the festival to promote the literary journal.
A commemorative Books by the Banks poster by artist/illustrator and Books by the Banks participant Jeffrey Ebbeler will be available for purchase at the festival for $15.
Books by the Banks is organized by UC Libraries, The Mercantile Library, the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Joseph-Beth Booksellers, Northern Kentucky University W. Frank Steely Library, Clermont County Library, the Lane Libraries, and the MidPointe Library System.
The Books by the Banks website has information on the authors scheduled to appear at the event, a schedule of panel sessions, activities scheduled in the Kids’ Corner, as well as directions and parking information for Duke Energy Convention Center. For more information, visit www.booksbythebanks.org.