
Come on out and say hello. Information can be found here.
Here is the press release for the event.
Kensington Day of the Book Festival
"Kensington street festival celebrates the International Day of the Book"
Where: 3786 Howard Avenue to 3716 Howard Ave, Kensington Md 20895
When: Sunday, April 25, 2010, 11am-4pm, rain or shine
Website: www.dayofthebook.com
Contact: Elisenda Sola-Sole
Phone: 301-949-9416
Email: kensingtonbookfestival@gmail.com
The 5th annual Kensington Day of the Book Festival will be held on Sunday, April 25, from 11am to 4pm on Howard Avenue in historic Old Town Kensington. This afternoon outdoor street festival celebrates the
International Day of the Book with over 100 local authors, poets, bookartists, booksellers, small publishers, literary groups, and community organizations set up along Howard Avenue to show and discuss their works. Visitors will enjoy listening to poetry readings, author panels, live music, and more.
Featuring authors from the Mystery Writers Association Mid Atlantic Chapter, among many others. Discover the unique charm of Old Town Kensington and the literary talent of our area. All activities are free to all. Rain or shine. Co-sponsored by the Town of Kensington and the Pauli Bellet Foundation
Catalan Library.
Activities for children and adults will include:
* Open Mic Poetry readings
* Children's books author readings
* Author panels including Vietnam War Novelists, and Mystery Writers Association
* Live Music by JP McDermott and Western Bop, and other local performers
* Chess exhibit by International Chess Master and chess book author Allan Savage
* Free rare book evaluations by Dale Sorenson, founder of Waverly Book Auctions
* The Twinbrook Tellers tell tales of magic and adventure
* A Literary Scavenger Hunt for children of all ages
* Free books from Bookcrossing
* Book art activities
Parking will be available in the neighborhood and a number of parking lots in the town. Food will be available at established food venues.
April twenty-third (the festival is on the nearest Sunday) is a symbolic day in world literature. Declared as International Day of the Book by UNESCO in 1995, this celebration of books and literature draws its inspiration from a Catalan tradition, the Festival of the Rose.
Legend has it that Saint George, Patron Saint of Catalonia (Spain) and international knight-errant, slew a dragon about to devour a beautiful Catalan princess. From the dragon's blood sprouted a rosebush, from which the hero plucked the prettiest rose for the princess. Hence the traditional Rose Festival celebrated in Barcelona since the Middle Ages to honor chivalry and love. In 1923, this lover's "festa" became even more poetic when it merged with "el dia del llibre", or The Day of the Book, to mark the nearly simultaneous deaths of Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare, the two giants of literary history, on April 23, 1616.
On this day in Barcelona, bookstalls and street festivities run the length of the picturesque La Rambla, the old city's main boulevard and, according to the Spanish author Garcia Lorca, "the only street in the world which I wish would never end". The Pauli Bellet Foundation Catalan Library, the Town of Kensington, and all our generous sponsors, invite you to celebrate this wonderful day on Howard Ave, our "La Rambla".
Follow the Kensington Day of the Book Festival on facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/elisenda.solasole?ref=profile#/pages/Kensington-Day-of-the-Book-Festival/197428863289?ref=mf