National Book Festival Goes Indoors, Draws Huge Crowds (photos)

Tens of thousands of book lovers and over 100 of the best writers from across the country descended on the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on Saturday August 30, 2014 for the 14th Annual Library of Congress National Book Festival. The Festival moved indoors this year primarily over concern by the National Park Service to preserving the grass on the National Mall. Despite the change, this year’s edition was very well attended with several authors speaking to standing room only crowds in the cavernous meeting rooms of the Convention Center. The highest honor at the event went to E.L. Doctorow, the celebrated author of “Ragtime,” “Billy Bathgate,” “The Book of Daniel” and many other novels, who received the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction from Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. Some of the featured presenters included former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, Russian author Nina Khrushcheva, archeologist Eric Cline, Congressman John Lewis and noted physicist Michio Kaku. (Webcasts of many of the presentations are available for viewing on www.c-span.org and at www.loc.gov/podcasts/bookfest14/index.html) This year’s Festival concluded with special evening programs covering poetry, the graphic novel, and film. Those who had attended previous book festivals noticed the familiar Pavilion of States, Let’s Read America children’s activities, the Library of Congress Pavilion and the Book Store. Children also lined up to be photographed with their favorite PBS Kids characters.

View our photos of the National Book Festival by clicking on the photo icons below. (All photos by Jeff Malet)