With two months to go before Baltimore’s newest book festival kicks off, organizers have put out a call for people to make it a success.
“Calling All Poets, Authors, Writers & Scribes: Join Us for the Waverly Book Festival!” reads a notice posted on Facebook by Baltimore’s 32nd Street Farmers Market, one of the book festival sites.
The festival’s lead organizers are Waverly Main Street, Red Emma’s Café and Bookstore, and Peabody Heights Brewery. Frustrated that the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts hasn’t produced a book festival since 2019, local businesses and community members decided to organize one in Waverly on April 28 to 30, the same weekend as Independent Bookstore Day, April 29 this year.
Organizers say the new festival will be “a collaboration of literary excellence” showcasing “Baltimore authors, publishers, illustrators and more.” Other confirmed participants include Urban Reads Bookstore, Normal’s Books & Records, and the Waverly branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library.
Preliminary plans call for a kickoff event on Friday, April 28; a series of programs and events at local bookstores and other businesses on Saturday, April 29; and a traditional festival with books, food and beer on Sunday, April 30, in the lot at 32nd and Barclay streets where the Farmers Market takes place on Saturdays.
In addition to vendors, organizers are looking for volunteers who can help with set up, clean-up and other activities. For more information, contact waverlybookfestival@gmail.com or the Waverly Main Street office at 410-889-8100.
