Decatur Book Festival to return after canceling last year

DECATUR, Ga. — The Decatur Book Festival will return this year for the first time in two years.

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The two-day festival will run from Oct. 4 - 5 with a full day of author panels and other activities. Friday night will kick the event off with a keynote event.

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The Decatur Book Festival was launched in 2005. It was originally three days long and attracted as many as 80,000 visitors.

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Organizers canceled the festival in 2022 after a 2020 virtual event and then a scaled-back event in 2021 and 2022.

“Our dedicated board members have worked tirelessly since our last festival in 2022. We’re thrilled to see renewed support from our community and key stakeholders, and we look forward to unveiling our new and returning sponsors soon,” volunteer president of the festival board and director fo the DeKalb County Public Library Alison Weissinger said.

Festival organizers also announced a new executive director. Leslie Wingate, who was the director of campus and community relations for Emory Libraries has retired to focus on the festival full-time.

“While this year’s festival will be intimate in scale, it serves as a prelude to the grand celebration awaiting in 2025 — the festival’s 20th-anniversary extravaganza!” Wingate said.

Several local bookstores, including A Cappella Books, Brave and Kind Bookshop, Charis Books and More, Eagle Eye Books, and Little Shop of Stories are set to participate. The full line-up has not been announced.

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