Save the date! Louisiana Book Festival returns Saturday, November 1

2025 festival art captures connection between Louisiana locales and literary culture

BATON ROUGE, La. – Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser and the Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana are excited to announce the return of the Louisiana Book Festival on Saturday, November 1, 2025.

The 21st annual event will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in downtown Baton Rouge at the Louisiana State Capitol, the State Library of Louisiana, Capitol Park Museum, and the surrounding Capitol Park area. Annually drawing more than 20,000 attendees, the Louisiana Book Festival is one of the country’s premier events celebrating writers, readers, and the books that connect them.

“Every year for the past 20 years, the streets around the state capitol overflow with book lovers enjoying Louisiana’s flagship literary festival," said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. “The great tradition of the Louisiana Book Festival continues this fall with a remarkable lineup of major writers and programs, providing a one-of-a-kind experience for readers of all ages. We look forward to welcoming everyone to this fantastic annual celebration that is uniquely Louisiana and among our nation’s best.”

Among the featured authors at this year’s festival are Wally Lamb, whose latest book The River is Waiting was just chosen as an Oprah Winfrey Book Club selection; Robert Mann, whose recent release You Are My Sunshine: Jimmy Davis and the Biography of a Song examines the complex history of one of the world’s most popular musical compositions; and John Cole, author of America’s Greatest Library: An Illustrated History of the Library of Congress, who is the founding director of the national Center for the Book and official historian of the Library of Congress. A live cooking demonstration will be provided by Marcelle Bienvenu, author of Who’s Your Mama, Are You Catholic, and Can You Make a Roux? To date, over 160 authors from across Louisiana and the nation have been confirmed for the event.

This year’s Louisiana Book Festival will feature more than 100 exhibitors including publishers, authors, libraries, and related vendors. The Young Readers’ Pavillion will include children’s authors, crafts, facepainting, balloon animals and more. Teens will have the opportunity to meet Young Adult authors and participate in crafts and other activities at the Teen HQ. The festival kicks off with Julie Kane, the 2025 Louisiana Writer Award honoree, receiving the prestigious award. The Friday before the festival, October 31, will also see the return of WordShops, informative writing workshops conducted by major authors. Details about the workshops will be released soon.

“The Louisiana Book Festival always has something for everyone,” said Louisiana Book Festival Acting Executive Director Robert Wilson. “Whether you’re into nonfiction, mysteries, sci-fi, biographies, poetry, or just want to experience the state’s biggest celebration of books and the wonderful people who write and enjoy them, you’ll love this event. We can’t wait to open the streets of downtown Baton Rouge to bibliophiles and festivalgoers from all over the country again this November.”

Each year the Louisiana Book Festival engages a Louisiana artist to provide the official artwork for the event. This year, Matt Dawson, a native of Natchitoches and resident of Pineville, created the 2025 festival’s signature piece.

Dawson is an award-winning artist and avid reader and said the opportunity to represent and promote Louisiana is not only a positive personal experience, but ties in perfectly with his latest series. “When I was approached about the art for the festival, I knew exactly what felt right for the piece and it was my recent city sketch scenes.”

The unique progressive layout of the artwork is inspired by the accordion sketchbook format, where pages fold out to reveal extended horizontal compositions. “Recently I’ve been filling accordion sketchbooks with continuous city scenes,” Dawson said. “These scenes are quirky, yet gritty at the same time. I thought it would be perfect if I stacked the streets one on another. I wanted to incorporate buildings from across the state, and between the buildings add books that are either set in Louisiana or were written by Louisianans, adding them to the street as if they were part of the landscape. The bottom of the piece is set in the morning, and the day progresses as your eyes move up, culminating in a celebration in New Orleans at night.”

Dawson joins the ranks of other influential Louisiana artists whose works have represented the festival. His work will be featured on a special commemorative poster and other promotional materials and is reflected in the design of this year’s festival logo.

The 2025 Louisiana Book Festival will also highlight a special anniversary ceremony as the State Library of Louisiana celebrates its 100th year serving the citizens and libraries of Louisiana.

“From its humble beginnings in 1925, the State Library has thrived, laying the foundation for the success of public libraries throughout Louisiana,” said State Librarian Meg Placke. “Today, a modern library is much more than a place to find a good book or conduct research. It is the heart of a healthy community and plays an essential role in education, innovation, and democracy. We’re excited to highlight the role of the State Library and share our centennial celebration with the attendees of this year’s festival.”

Full details, roster of writers, program schedule, sponsorship and exhibitor information for the 2025 Louisiana Book Festival will be posted online over the coming weeks at LouisianaBookFestival.org.

The Louisiana Center for the Book was established in the State Library of Louisiana in 1994. Its mission is to stimulate public interest in reading, books, literacy, and libraries and to celebrate Louisiana’s rich literary heritage. It is the official state affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book.

Contact information: