This is a guest post by Literary Initiatives intern Leilani D’Angla-Rose.
The Library of Congress National Book Festival will celebrate its 25th year on September 6, 2025. For this year’s festival information, visit the 2025 National Book Festival website.
To honor the occasion, we are taking the 24 weeks leading up to this year’s festival at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center to highlight two videos each week from past National Book Festivals, from the festival’s first year in 2001 to 2024. Each week we’ll highlight a past festival year. We hope you enjoy scrolling through the past with us! Check out videos from the first 2001 festival here.
Walter Isaacson is an American journalist known for his biographies of Steve Jobs, Henry Kissinger and Albert Einstein, among others. He has held several distinguished roles, including as the former editor of TIME magazine and CEO of the Aspen Institute. In 2012, he was selected as one of the Time 100, the magazine’s list of the most influential people in the world. Isaacson is currently the Leonard Lauder Professor of American History and Values at Tulane University; he also conducts interviews for PBS and CNN. Frequently highlighting the defining traits of influential historical figures, Isaacson explores the intersection of science, the humanities and innovation.
The below video showcases Isaacson’s perspectives the shared characteristics of groundbreaking innovators such as Steve Jobs, Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein.
Walter Isaacson begins speaking at 4:45, and the video proceeds as follows:
4:45: Steve Jobs and innovation
9:33: The making of a great product
13:32: “The Reality Distortion Field”
16:14: The iPhone
19:25: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”
22:40: Einstein on curiosity
27:41: Franklin’s curiosity
35:05: Thinking outside the box
37:37: The flow of history
38:58: Einstein and Franklin’s legacies
41:52: Q&A begins
Lois Lowry is known for her books for children and young adults, including “The Giver,” “Number the Stars” and “The Willoughbys.” Her stories frequently explore complex themes such as individuality, morality and dystopian societies, and her books are a staple in middle and high school curricula. Over the course of her extensive career, Lowry has written more than 40 books and has received numerous accolades, including two Newbery Medals and the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award.
In the video below, Lowry discusses the themes of her then-upcoming book and reflects on the lasting power of storytelling in the lives of young readers.
Lois Lowry begins speaking at 2:47, and the video proceeds as follows:
3:20: On “The Giver”
5:13: The frustration of finality
6:28: The Boy in “Gathering Blue”
10:16: Excerpt from “Son”
18:34: What sacrifice means
20:20: Q&A begins
Come back next week for highlights from 2013!