A few weekends ago Kat and I went up to National Book Festival. I felt like I needed to stretch first because it’s been so long since I’ve been to an author/book event.
2016 National Book Fest
This is my second time going to National Book Fest, the first time was way back in 2011when we were newbies book bloggers. Ah, memories. Kat even made a video
Back in 2011 the festival was outside, but I guess now they do it at The Washington Convention Center. There were red bags and librarians everywhere. To me the festival felt a whole lot less festive since it was indoors. I kind of felt like I was at a super casual conference. They had an exhibit floor downstairs with a nice interactive element where you could visit each state’s table to collect stickers for a prize.
I guess the plus of being indoors is that there are more parking options and food but I just wanted to see more tents.
Kat and I wanted to get something for our nephew so we picked up Juana Medina’s The Big Salad . It teaches healthy eating habits and counting !
Shonda Rhimes @ National BookFest
The event was packed with Shondaland fans and Rhimes was introduced by Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and interviewed by philanthropist David M Rubenstein. It was interesting hearing Rhimes journey to success. I had no idea she went to Dartmouth or that she wrote the movie Crossroads. But honestly, the interview was very controlled and had some awkward pacing.
Side Note
They didn’t clear the room so we came in early caught the end of Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s session, he knows a lot about history and was very poised and intelligent. I can totally see why he published aSherlock Holmes novel.