State Library of Louisiana

What to expect from the virtual event happening October 30 – November 14

 BATON ROUGE, La. – Mark your calendar as the 17th Annual Louisiana Book Festival will launch programs on Saturday and Sunday, October 30-31, 2021. Additional new content will be available over the following two weeks on Friday, November 5, through Sunday, November 7, and Friday, November 12, through Sunday, November 14. This free, family-friendly, annual festival celebrating readers, writers, and books is being presented virtually this year. More than 80 authors and presenters will discuss their books during more than 40 virtual programs, including 15 presentations for children, tweens, and teens. Virtual programs can be viewed on the Louisiana Book Festival YouTube channel.

 Authors participating in this year’s festival include 2021 Louisiana Writer Award recipient Fatima Shaik, Louisiana Poet Laureate Mona Lisa Saloy, and Louisiana Young Readers’ Choice Award winning author Tommy Greenwald (Game Changer). Other featured authors include David Armand (The Lord’s Acre), Rickie Lee Jones (Last Chance Texaco), Alecia Long (Cruising for Conspirators), Robert Mann (Backrooms and Bayous), Joshua Prager (The Family Roe), and Steven V. Roberts (Cokie: A Life Well Lived).

 To learn about additional authors and participants, see a complete list on the Louisiana Book Festival’s featured author page. A digital version of the program guide with more details is also available. More information and updates are available on the Louisiana Book Festival website and on Facebook.

 All featured titles will be available for purchase through Cavalier House Books. All purchases of featured festival books made through December 31, 2021, will receive a 20% discount with the festival code LABOOKFEST.

 The Louisiana Center for the Book, established in the State Library of Louisiana in 1994 for the purpose of stimulating public interest in reading, books, literacy, and libraries and celebrating Louisiana’s rich literary heritage, is the state affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Rebecca Hamilton
State Library of Louisiana
225-342-4923
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Veronica Mosgrove
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
225-342-7009
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

BATON ROUGE, La. –  The Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana is proud to present the 17th Annual Louisiana Book Festival. The Louisiana Book Festival is a free, nationally recognized literary event that typically takes place live and in-person around Capitol Park in Baton Rouge. This year, because of the continuing pandemic, the festival is being presented virtually with 40 programs and over 80 authors and presenters.

"Since its inception, the Louisiana Book Festival has grown in size and popularity, drawing attendees from all over the world, with an annual attendance of nearly 30,000 people joining us in Baton Rouge to celebrate the literary culture of our state and its readers," said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. "While we look forward to the in-person return next year, we are excited to be able to bring the festival to you virtually this year."

The Louisiana Book Festival will launch programs on Saturday, October 30, with new content made available every weekend through Sunday, November 14. Author pages will be posted soon, and the full schedule of programs will be available mid-October. These and more information and updates can be found on the Louisiana Book Festival website and on Facebook.

"I am thrilled for us to be able to present this virtual version of the Louisiana Book Festival, and I am especially excited to participate by interviewing the iconic singer/songwriter Rickie Lee Jones about her memoir," said State Librarian Rebecca Hamilton. "Although we will miss the personal interaction and intimacy only an in-person festival can bring, we are grateful for the many authors and participants who cooperated to make this year's festival possible."

One Book One Festival, which has become a festival tradition, continues with a discussion of Ernest J. Gaines's A Gathering of Old Men, presented again by the ever-popular Dr. Gary Richards, so attendees will want to prepare for that by reading or revisiting this timely Louisiana classic.

Copies of the novel as well as all books featured at the festival may be ordered through the official festival independent bookseller, Cavalier House Books of Denham Springs. Local artist Jonathan Mayers was commissioned to create the piece titled Lané a kawènn-la (which means The Year of the Turtle in the Creole language Kouri-Vini) for the festival. The original painting was photographed by David Humphreys and can be seen on the website.

The Louisiana Center for the Book, established in the State Library of Louisiana in 1994 for the purpose of stimulating public interest in reading, books, literacy, and libraries and celebrating Louisiana's rich literary heritage, is the state affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Rebecca Hamilton
State Library of Louisiana
225-342-4923
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Veronica Mosgrove
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
225-342-7009
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

BATON ROUGE, La. –  Entering its 22nd year, the Louisiana Readers' Choice (LYRC/LTRC) Awards Program is excited to announce the 2022-2023 nominated title lists for grades 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12. Since the program's first list in 1999, over 400,000 students have read the recommended titles and voted for their favorites, reading more than 1.3 million books in the process.

Every year thousands of students from elementary to high school age vote for their favorite book from a list of titles curated by librarians serving on the LYRC/LTRC committees from across the state. Many students cast their ballots on real voting machines supplied by the Secretary of State's Voter Outreach Division.

"The Louisiana Readers' Choice Awards is just one of the many phenomenal programs offered through the State Library which inspires a love of reading in the young people of our state," said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. "Studies show children and young adults who develop a love of reading do better in school. They have better writing and spelling skills. They even develop more motivation and confidence in life."

The 2022-2023 Louisiana Readers' Choice Awards nominated titles list includes seven Junior Library Guild Selections, seven YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers, two CILIP Carniegie Medal Nominees, two Schneider Family Honor Books, a Stonewall Honor Book, a Newbury Honor Book, and a National Book Award Finalist. They have earned sixty starred reviews overall and were written by outstanding authors such as Matthew Cordell, Lev Grossman, Nic Stone, Christina Soontornvat, Kacen Callender, Lamar Giles, and Ibi Zoboi. From fiction to nonfiction, picture books to novels, science fiction to romance, historical to contemporary, these carefully chosen booklists cover a variety of interests and genres, so there is something for every reader.

"The titles on these lists are selected by professional school and public librarians from across the state with decades of experience working with children and children's literature," said State Librarian Rebecca Hamilton. "The nominated titles represent a variety of interests and viewpoints. Finding similarities with people who look and think differently helps connect us and fuels compassion. These are books that kids will love and the will inspires them to keep reading beyond the classroom walls, helping to create a culture of literacy in Louisiana, all of which is a key part of our mission here at the State Library."

The Louisiana Readers' Choice is a reading enrichment program of the Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana, which is the state affiliate for the National Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. Its mission is to foster a love of reading in the children of Louisiana by motivating them to participate in the recognition of outstanding books. According to a 2019 Kids Count report, 74% of Louisiana's fourth graders and 73% of Louisiana's eighth graders are not reading at a proficient level. The Louisiana Center for the Book and the State Library of Louisiana believe fostering a lifelong love of reading among Louisianans will contribute to the state's overall economic growth and quality of life.

For information about the program including previous winners, how to participate, and additional resources such as free bookmarks, posters, and study guides, please visit the Louisiana Readers' Choice Awards Program webpage.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Rebecca Hamilton
State Library of Louisiana
225-342-4923
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Veronica Mosgrove
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
225-342-7009
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Louisiana Readers’ Choice (LYRC/LTRC) Awards Program

2022-2023 Nominated Titles

Grades 3-5:

• All the Way to the Top: How One Girl’s Fight for Americans with Disabilities Changed Everything written by Annette Bay Pimentel, illustrated by Nabi H. Ali (Sourcebooks Explore, Sourcebooks)
• The Arabic Quilt: An Immigrant Story written by Aya Khalil, illustrated by Anait Semirdzhyan (Tilbury House Publishers, W.W. Norton)
• The Best of Iggy written by Annie Barrows, illustrated by Sam Ricks (G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, Penguin Random House)
• The Boy Who Grew Dragons written by Andy Shepherd (little bee books, Simon & Schuster)
• Claude: The True Story of a White Alligator written by Emma Bland Smith, illustrated by Jennifer M. Potter (Little Bigfoot, Penguin Random House)
• Dinosaur Lady: The Daring Discoveries of Mary Anning, the First Paleontologist written by Linda Skeers, illustrated by Marta Álvarez Miguéns (Sourcebooks Explore, Sourcebooks)
• The Great Pet Heist by Emily Ecton, illustrated by David Mottram (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, Simon & Schuster)
• Hello Neighbor!: The Kind and Caring World of Mister Rogers written and illustrated by Matthew Cordell (Neal Porter Books, Penguin Random House)
• The Messy Life of Blue written by Shawna Railey (little bee books, Simon & Schuster)
• Midnight at the Barclay Hotel written by Fleur Bradley, illustrated by Xavier Bonet (Viking Books for Young Readers, Penguin Random House)
• The Polio Pioneer: Dr. Jonas Salk and the Polio Vaccine written by Linda Elovitz Marshall, illustrated by Lisa Anchin (Knopf Books for Young Readers, Penguin Random House)
• Shirley Chisholm Is a Verb written by Veronica Chambers, illustrated by Rachelle Baker (Dial Books, Penguin Random House)
• The Silver Arrow written by Lev Grossman (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Hachette)
• Swish!: The Slam-Dunking, Alley-Ooping, High-Flying Harlem Globetrotters written by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Don Tate (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Hachette)
• This Way, Charlie written by Caron Lewis, illustrated by Charles Santoso (Abrams Books for Young Readers, Abrams)

Grades 6-8:

• 96 Miles written by J.L. Esplin (Starscape, Macmillan)
• Bloom written by Kenneth Oppel (Knopf Books for Young Readers, Penguin Random House)
• City Spies written by James Ponti (Aladdin, Simon & Schuster)
• Clean Getaway written by Nic Stone, illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile (Crown Books for Young Readers, Penguin Random House)
• Danny Constantino’s First (and Maybe Last?) Date written by Paul Acampora (HarperCollins)
• Dress Coded written by Carrie Firestone (G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, Penguin Random House)
• From the Desk of Zoe Washington written by Janae Marks (Katherine Tegen Books, HarperCollins)
• Twins written by Varian Johnson, illustrated by Shannon Wright (Graphix, Scholastic)
• When Life Gives You Mangos written by Kereen Getten (Delacorte Press, Penguin Random House)
• When Stars Are Scattered written by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed, illustrated by Victoria Jamieson and Iman Geddy (Dial Books, Penguin Random House)
• Wink written and illustrated by Rob Harrell (Dial Books, Penguin Random House)
• A Wish in the Dark written by Christina Soontornvat (Candlewick, Candlewick Press)

Grades 9-12 (Teen):

• Almost American Girl written and illustrated by Robin Ha (Balzer + Bray, HarperCollins)
• Deeplight written by Frances Hardinge (Harry N. Abrams, Abrams)
• Felix Ever After written by Kacen Callender (Balzer + Bray, HarperCollins)
• Here the Whole Time written by Vitor Martins (Scholastic Press, Scholastic)
• I’ll Be the One written by Lyla Lee (Katherine Tegen Books, HarperCollins)
• The Light in Hidden Places written by Sharon Cameron (Scholastic Press, Scholastic)
• Not So Pure and Simple written by Lamar Giles (Quill Tree Books, HarperCollins)
• Punching the Air written by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam (Balzer + Bray, HarperCollins)
• This Is My America written by Kim Johnson (Random House Books for Young Readers, Penguin Random House)
• This Train Is Being Held written by Ismée Williams (Harry N. Abrams, Abrams)

BATON ROUGE, La. – The Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana proudly announces that author and Louisiana native Fatima Shaik has been selected as the recipient of the 22nd annual Louisiana Writer Award. The prestigious award recognizes outstanding contributions to Louisiana's literary and intellectual life exemplified by a contemporary writer's body of work.

Shaik’s books include her recent narrative nonfiction Economy Hall: The Hidden History of a Free Black Brotherhood (The Historic New Orleans Collection), a meticulously researched work on a largely forgotten aspect of Louisiana history, described as “lyrical and mysterious and always captivating” by The New York Times.

Shaik’s other work includes the short story collections The Mayor of New Orleans: Just Talking Jazz and What Went Missing and What Got Found; two children’s picture books, The Jazz of Our Street and On Mardi Gras Day; and the young adult novel Melitte, all set in Louisiana, as well as numerous articles and essays.

“We are fortunate to have such rich literary talent in our state,” said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. "I am proud that through this recognition, more readers will be introduced to Fatima Shaik’s impressive body of work and her numerous fans will applaud her being selected."

“With all of her books set in Louisiana and spanning many literary genres, Fatima's writing is an incredibly important contribution to Louisiana’s ongoing literary heritage. In her most recent work, she gives a voice to those whose voices would have been lost to history without her careful and dedicated research,” said State Librarian Rebecca Hamilton. “She joins a distinguished and varied array of past Louisiana Writer Award recipients from Ernest Gaines, the first honoree, through last year’s recipient, John Barry. It is an honor to present this award to such a truly outstanding writer.”

Shaik’s work has appeared in The Southern Review, Callaloo, Literary Hub, The Root, In These Times, and The New York Times and the anthologies N. O. Lit: 200 Years of Louisiana Literature and Breaking Ice: An Anthology of Contemporary African American Fiction, among others. She has received awards from the NEH, LEH, the Kittredge Fund, and the Platforms Fund. Founder of the Communication Department at Saint Peter’s University, Shaik is a member of The Writers Room NYC and a trustee of PEN America.

Learning of her selection, Shaik responded, “I am honored to be recognized by my state. Louisiana is dear to my heart, and its cultural history is central to my work. Anyone who knows me knows that Louisiana is ‘home.’"

The Louisiana Center for the Book will present the Louisiana Writer Award to Shaik at an opening ceremony of the Louisiana Book Festivalon Saturday, October 30, in Baton Rouge. Additionally, Shaik will be interviewed at the festival by Susan Larson, host of The Reading Life weekly radio and podcast series. For more information on Shaik and her work, please visit the Louisiana Writer Awardwebpage.

The Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana coordinates the Louisiana Writer Award and other programs and events that support reading, books, literacy, and libraries; it is the state Affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Rebecca Hamilton
State Library of Louisiana
225-342-4923
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Barry Landry
Department of Cultur, Recreation & Tourism
225-342-7009
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

BATON ROUGE, La. – The Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana announces its contribution to “Read Around the States,” a project of the Library of Congress with its state affiliates to promote books, reading, libraries, and literacy nationwide. Conceived by the Library of Congress’s Center for the Book and coordinated by the Congressional Relations Office, the project features videos with members of the U.S. Congress from each state reading from a children’s book associated with their states.

The Congressional members volunteer to read from a special book for young people they have selected that is connected to their states either through the book’s author or setting or simply because it is a favorite. Each short video also includes an interview with the book’s author, conducted by the Affiliate center for the book in the member’s state.

The book selected by Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy is The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore by children’s author, illustrator, and filmmaker William Joyce, a native of Shreveport, Louisiana. An interview with Joyce conducted by Jim Davis, Director of the Louisiana Center for the Book, follows the Senator’s reading of an excerpt from the book.

“I can’t think of another Louisiana children’s book that so universally promotes the value of reading and libraries and how books truly enrich our lives, no matter what our age,” said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser.

“We were so pleased of this opportunity to be an early participant in this Library of Congress project and to learn of Senator Cassidy’s book selection,” says State Librarian Rebecca Hamilton. “Bill Joyce is a true friend of the State Library and its Center for the Book, and ‘Morris Lessmore’ affirms everything we fundamentally stand for: the transformative power of reading.”

Joyce is a steadfast supporter of the State Library and its Center’s efforts celebrating books and literacy, having attended the Louisiana Book Festival six times and additionally having created the special artwork for the 15th festival featuring Morris Lessmore. He is a recipient of the Louisiana Center’s Louisiana Writer Award, the first children’s author receiving the honor.

Joyce’s work has appeared on numerous covers of The New Yorker magazine and has won six Emmys, three Annies, and an Academy Award for the animated version of “Morris Lessmore.” Joyce began his career as a children’s book author/illustrator in 1981 and published his first self-illustrated work, George Shrinks, in 1985.

Today he is the award-winning author/illustrator of more than 50 best-selling children’s books and novels, which have been translated into over 40 languages. He received the 2017 Humanist of the Year Award from the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities.

The Louisiana “Read Around the States” video can be found on the Library of Congress’s website. As other states’ videos are added, they may be found on the Read Around the States webpage. The full, 50-minute interview between Bill Joyce and Jim Davis is available on the Louisiana Book Festival YouTube channel

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Rebecca Hamilton
State Library of Louisiana
225-342-4923
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Barry Landry
Department of Cultur, Recreation & Tourism
225-342-7009
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Louisiana Center for the Book presents two programs to celebrate National Poetry Month

BATON ROUGE, La. – The Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana will celebrate the 25th annual National Poetry Month with a virtual edition of its “Just Listen to Yourself: Louisiana’s Poet Laureate Presents Louisiana Poets” and an additional event to celebrate the past decade of this series.

Louisiana Poet Laureate John Warner Smith will host the eleventh annual program with six poets from across the state invited by Smith to read their work. They include David Armand, Kelly Harris-DeBerry, William J. Jefferson, Dorie LaRue, Patrice Melnick, and Thomas Parrie. The presentation will be recorded and accessible on YouTube and Facebook on Tuesday, April 20, beginning at 12:00 p.m.

A lagniappe event, “Just Listen to Yourself: A Retrospective,” will feature Darrell Bourque, the Louisiana Poet Laureate who originated the program in 2011, hosting readings by all of the poets who have served as the state’s poet laureates and hosted this annual event since its inception. They include, in chronological order, Julie Kane, Ava Leavell Haymon, Peter Cooley, Jack Bedell, and John Warner Smith. This recorded presentation will be accessible on YouTube and Facebook on Tuesday, April 27, beginning at 12:00 p.m.

“With the pandemic still making convening for programs in person difficult,” said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. “I am excited the State Library of Louisiana has created opportunities again this year for Louisiana poets to be heard through these alternative virtual presentations.”

“The State Library of Louisiana is proud that it is able to participate in National Poetry Month again this year and to look back fondly at the previous decade of ‘Just Listen’ events,” said State Librarian Rebecca Hamilton. “During those years 58 poets have appeared as panelists with the six poet laureate hosts, some multiple times. I am gratified that we have been able to offer this program without pause, now for the eleventh time, including four additional individuals who have not previously participated. Each year it is so rewarding for us to celebrate Louisiana’s literary talent by hearing the voices of poets from throughout the state. I am particularly proud of all our staff behind the scenes who have made this and other virtual programs possible, which allows us to reach more Louisianans than ever before.”

For a listing of all the participating poets who have contributed to the “Just Listen to Yourself” series, see below.

The Louisiana Center for the Book, established in the State Library of Louisiana in 1994 for the purpose of stimulating public interest in reading, books, and libraries and celebrating Louisiana’s rich literary heritage, is the state affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book.

Just Listen to Yourself
The Louisiana Poet Laureate Presents Louisiana Poets
Participants
2011 - 2020

All Panelists:

​(in alphabetical order)

Liz Adair

Ralph Adamo

Nordette Adams

Caroline Ancelet

Jack Bedell

Katie Bickham

Darrell Bourque

Mary Katherine Brake

Marilyn Burel

Kelly Clayton

Carlos Colón

Peter Cooley

Sidney Creaghan

Dorothy Early Davis

Charles deGravelles

Malaika Favorite

Gina Ferrara

Amy Fleury

Charles Garrett

John Gery

Lara Glenum

Christopher Hannan

Kelly Harris

Ashley Mace Havird

David Havird

Ava Leavell Haymon

Clemonce Heard

Carolyn Hembree

Kirby Jambon

Charles Jolivette

Julie Kane

Elizabeth King

Justin Lamb

Dorie LaRue

Madeleine LeCesne

Clare Martin

Bonny McDonald

David Middleton

Laura Mullen

Biljana Obradovic

Melinda Palacio

Andrea Panzeca

Alison Pelegrin

Michelle Pichon

Jennifer Reeser

Brad Richard

Donney Rose

Leigh Camacho Rourks

Mona Lisa Saloy

Chancelier “Xero” Skidmore

Genaro Kỳ Lý Smith

John Warner Smith

Jay Udall

Lenore Weiss

Kelly West

Gail White

Afton Wilky

Andy Young

​Hosts:

(in chronological order)

Darrell Bourque

Julie Kane

Ava Leavell Haymon

Peter Cooley

Jack Bedell

John Warner Smith

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Rebecca Hamilton
State Library of Louisiana
225-342-4923
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Barry Landry
Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism
225-342-7009
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it