BERKELEY, CA: The fourth annual Bay Area Book Festival (BABF)—one of the premier literary events of its kind in North America—will feature a free lively outdoor fair with hundreds of book-related exhibitors and artisans, two stages, a Cal Pavilion, an array of food vendors, and a Family Fun Zone spanning nearly three city blocks.
On hand will be Oakland’s Grammy Award-nominated Alphabet Rockers, the acclaimed Bay Area Children’s Theatre and many other groups and organizations. Festival-goers can gather to shop, explore, enjoy live performances, eat great food and get up close and personal with 200 exhibitors including scores of popular and emerging authors, artisans, publishers, independent bookstores, literature groups and much more.
The BABF outdoor fair is a chance for participants to experience presentations from thought-provoking authors at an outdoor stage sponsored by the San Francisco Chronicle. Authors include former U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera, commentator Sally Kohn, bestseller Geneen Roth, Robert Reich, Rebecca Solnit and Alice Waters, among others.
The BABF Family Fun Zone will be jam-packed with fun, enriching activities where children and families can create their own books, make handmade art with found objects, play on a giant scrabble board, add personal touches to the LegoJeep, make Monsterbots, and find treasures at the annual free book give-away.
The Family Fun Zone will showcase authors that cater to younger readers, ranging from picture books to chapter books. Kids can romp in a festive carnival with inflatables, bouncy houses, arcade games and rides, and explore Astro Botanicals ─ a series of giant inflatable flower sculptures that create a fun, interactive space for socializing and reading.
The festival’s annual ShowTime Stage spotlights live music, dance, readings and performances. New this year: on Saturday, April 28, the Festival presents a community hip-hop party hosted by Oakland’s Alphabet Rockers. On Sunday, April 29, author readings, book illustrators and performances by renowned family-friendly comedians, jugglers, and Bay Area Children’s Theatre.
India Post News Service