2024 Events - Kentucky Book Festival

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SOLD OUT Literary Luncheon featuring Crystal Wilkinson in conversation with Ronni Lundy

October 31, 2024

12:00PM – 2:00PM

Join Crystal Wilkinson and Ronni Lundy for a discussion of Crystal’s culinary memoir, Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts: Stories and Recipes from Five Generations of Black Country Cooks in the beautiful setting of Fasig Tipton on October 31st, noon to 2pm.

Books + Brews Trivia

October 31, 2024

7:00PM – 9:00PM

Around the Kitchen Table with Al Roker and Edward Lee in conversation with Ouita Michel

November 2, 2024

10:00AM – 11:15AM

Join your favorite weatherman Al Roker and the bourbon chef Edward Lee in conversation with Lexington beloved foodie Ouita Michel for a spirited love letter to memory-making meals for every occasion. $35 Single Ticket with a copy of Recipes to Live By: Easy, Memory-Making Family Dishes for Every Occasion by Al Roker $65 Couple Tickets […]

In Search of Justice with Barbara Bradley Hagerty in conversation with Stephen B. Bright

November 2, 2024

10:30AM – 11:15AM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Barbara Bradley Hagerty Bringing Ben Home: A Murder, A Conviction, and The Fight to Redeem American Justice Twice the recipient of the American Women in Radio and Television Award, Barbara Bradley Hagerty is a New […]

Hoofbeats and Heartbeats with Jessica Whitehead, Roda Feraro and Avalyn Hunter

November 2, 2024

2:30PM – 3:30PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Jessica Whitehead The History of the Kentucky Derby in 75 Objects An independent writer and artist, Jessica K. Whitehead is curator of collections at the Kentucky Derby Museum, where she has worked for more than […]

Making Sense of the Chaos with Nic Stone in conversation with Mariama J. Lockington

November 2, 2024

12:30PM – 1:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Nic Stone Chaos Theory After graduating from Spelman College, Nic Stone worked extensively in teen mentoring and lived in Israel for a few years before returning to the US to write full-time. The #1 New […]

Reflections on A Spiritual Journey with Brother Paul Quenon and Jon Sweeney in conversation with Fenton Johnson

November 2, 2024

11:15AM – 12:00PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Book signing in Spirituality section within Joseph Beth. Abbey of Gethsemani’s Brother Paul Quenon to discuss book at Kentucky Book Festival on Nov. 2 The 2024 Kentucky Book Festival announces a rare opportunity to hear […]

Keeping Your Eye on the Ball: Writing about Sports with Jerry Tipton, Doug Brunk and Dorian Hairston

November 2, 2024

1:30PM – 2:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Jerry Tipton Déjà Blue: A Sportswriter Reflects on 41 Seasons of Kentucky Basketball After a Hall of Fame career that spanned nearly 50 years, veteran sportswriter Jerry Tipton is best known for his no nonsense […]

Finding Your Writing Life with Kathleen Driskell

November 2, 2024

3:30PM – 4:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Kathleen Driskell Award-winning poet and teacher Kathleen Driskell serves as the Associate Program Director of Spalding Universityrsquo;s brief-residency Master of Fine Arts in Writing Program in Louisville, Kentucky, where she is Associate Professor of Creative […]

Shelf-Care is Self-Care: Writers on Mental Health with Tom C. Hunley, Anya Liftig, Rainesford Stauffer, Kelly E. Hill and Lynnell Edwards

November 2, 2024

2:30PM – 3:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Tom C. Hunley The Loneliest Whale in the World A professor of English and Creative Writing at Western Kentucky University since 2003, Tom C. Hunley has published eight full-length poetry collections, eight chapbooks, and two […]

Behind the Words: Ghostwriting & Collaborating with Lisa Dickey, Jeff Biggers and Marcia Thornton Jones

November 2, 2024

3:00PM – 3:45PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Lisa Dickey The Situation Room: The Inside Story of Presidents in Crisis A longtime book collaborator, Lisa Dickey has helped write more than 20 nonfiction books, including 12 New York Times best sellers, and is […]

Poetry Readaround 2024 KBF Poets Jam with MC Jude McPherson

November 2, 2024

4:00PM – 4:45PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Jude C. McPherson is a Kentucky Colonel Goodwill Ambassador. He has a background in creative writing, electricity, and general troubleshooting. Currently, he is an agent for the Kentucky Black Writers Collaborative, a creative writing instructor, […]

We Dream a World with Yolanda Renee King – teen granddaughter of civil rights leader MLK in conversation with Brian Clardy

November 2, 2024

12:00PM – 12:45PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Yolanda Renee King to speak at Kentucky Book Festival Activist, grand-daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. to speak, sign book at noon Nov. 2 at Joseph-Beth Booksellers Yolanda Renee King will be speaking and […]

Culinary Conversations with Crystal Wilkinson in conversation with Dr. Shauna M. Morgan

November 2, 2024

11:00AM – 11:45AM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Crystal Wilkinson Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts Recipient of a Writing Freedom fellowship, an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Poetry, an O. Henry Prize, an Academy of American Poets Fellowship, a USA Artists Fellowship, and […]

Latino Poetry with Rigoberto Gonzalez in conversation with Jeremy Paden

November 2, 2024

11:30AM – 12:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Rigoberto González Latino Poetry: The Library of America Anthology Rigoberto González is distinguished professor of English at Rutgers University in Newark, where he is director of the MFA program in creative writing. He edited, Latino […]

The Voting Voyage with Joshua A. Douglas and Carolyn Dupont in conversation with Scott Jennings

November 2, 2024

10:00AM – 10:45AM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Joshua A. Douglas The Court v. The Voters: The Troubling Story of How the Supreme Court Has Undermined Voting Rights Joshua A. Douglas is a law professor at the University of Kentucky College of Law […]

The Good Health of the Land with Brooks Lamb and George Barnett, in conversation with Mary Berry

November 2, 2024

1:00PM – 1:45PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Brooks Lamb Love for the Land: Lessons from Farmers Who Persist in Place Brooks Lamb, the land protection and access specialist at American Farmland Trust, is a conservationist, agrarian, teacher, and author. His latest book, […]

2024 Pulitzer Prize Biography: King, A Life with Jonathan Eig in conversation with DeVone Holt

November 2, 2024

2:00PM – 2:45PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Jonathan Eig King: A Life Jonathan Eig is a former senior writer for The Wall Street Journal and a New York Times bestselling author of several books that have been listed among the best of […]

Strike A Chord: The Symphony of Music and Writing with B. Elizabeth Beck, Steven L. Jones and Tammy Oberhausen in conversation with Scott Whiddon

November 2, 2024

12:30PM – 1:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Elizabeth Beck Dancing on the Page Elizabeth Beck is a poet who writes fiction and the founder of two poetry series: Teen Howl and Poetry at the/ˈtā-bəl/ in Lexington, Kentucky. Her fifth collection of poems, […]

For the Love of the Game with Derrick Ramsey, Jack Givens, and Tom Hammond in conversation with Alan Cutler

November 2, 2024

1:45PM – 2:30PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Derrick Ramsey They Call Me Mr. Secretary Derrick Ramsey was the first African American starting quarterback in the history of the University of Kentucky football program who went on to great success in the NFL, […]

Love Letter to YA with Christen Randall, Shannon Stocker, Ambika Vohra and David Arnold

November 2, 2024

11:30AM – 12:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Christen Randall The No-Girlfriend Rule When Christen Randall, a queer, fat, neurodivergent author, is not writing joyful stories for the next generation of geeky gay kids, you can find them working at their local library […]

Troublesome Rising with Melisa Helton, Pauletta Hansel, Julia Watts, George Ella Lyon and Frank X Walker

November 2, 2024

12:30PM – 1:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Melissa Helton Troublesome Rising Previously a tenured associate professor of English at Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College, Melissa Helton, serves as the literary arts director for the Hindman Settlement School. In Troublesome Rising, a […]

Destination: Kentucky with Jon Reynolds, Blair Thomas Hess, Cameron Ludwick, and Kathryn Witt

November 22, 2024

1:30PM – 2:15PM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Jon Reynolds Illuminating Nature: Chasing Light Across the Landscape An award-winning photographer based in the Northern Kentucky/Greater Cincinnati area, Jon Reynolds has been a full-time adult educator with Gateway Community and Technical College for over […]

Literary T(w)een Scene with Teen Howl Series and Carnegie Center

November 2, 2024

10:30AM – 11:15AM

Presented by The Kentucky Book Festival and Kentucky Humanities, this program is part of the main festival on November 2. Founded November 2011 by Elizabeth Beck and Jay McCoy, Teen Howl 2.0, under new leadership of former Teen Howl Poets, Jessica Taylor and Hunter Nelson welcome poets aged 13-20 to Third Street Stuff & Coffee […]

2024 Book Festival

November 2, 2024
9:30am-5:00pm

Joseph Beth Booksellers
161 Lexington Green Cir # B
Lexington, KY 40503

School Days

School Days Program brings authors to dozens of schools across Kentucky to meet students in an exciting, interactive learning experience.

Pop Up Events

Author spotlights, events and celebrations all year leading up to the Book Festival.