Book Festival Swag

The big day is tomorrow! More than 120 authors of all genres will make presentations on 13 stages throughout the day and into the night at the 16th annual Library of Congress National Book Festival.

And, because we know you will have a great time at this joyous celebration of books and reading, we already have suggestions for mementos to grab to commemorate the event.

Posters
The 2016 poster was designed by Yuko Shimizu, conveying the theme of “journeys to the unknown.” Pick up your free festival poster from the information booths at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on Saturday. You can also download the poster here.

Red Hot Bags

Every year, the festival bags provided by our media partner, C-SPAN 2’s BookTV, are a hot commodity. Make sure to pick up your free bag when you arrive before they are all gone. The bag color this year is red.

Apparel
Because what better way is there to show your book pride than to wear your very own National Book Festival gear? The Library of Congress Shop will be on-site with an array of apparel in sizes for kids and adults. Choose from t-shirts, hoodies and caps.

Patches
Purchase the National Book Festival patch to help your scout celebrate attendance at this celebration of books and reading. And for non-scouts, it’s a fun souvenir of your visit to the festival.

Souvenirs
The Library of Congress  Shop will also carry a variety of souvenirs for you to mark the occasion or to share with family and friends. The shop will carry festival magnets, mugs and more.

Books
Last but not least, what would a book festival be without books? Lots and lots of books. Politics and Prose is the bookseller for the National Book Festival and will be on-site with books galore. I asked Jon Purves, director of marketing and publicity at Politics and Prose, about the number of books they will bring and how they will get them set up to sell, here’s what he had to say:

Getting ready for the National Book Festival is a massive undertaking for Politics and Prose, and one that requires pretty much everyone in our company to get involved. Over the past few months, we’ve been busy ordering tens of thousands of books, representing approximately 120 authors, illustrators, and poets who will be appearing on the day.

In the days leading up to the festival, we’ll be putting these books out on display and setting up everything else needed at the book sales area, from registers to book bags. Essentially, we’re bringing Politics and Prose to the convention center! Some 75 booksellers will be working on September 24, assisted by representatives from other organizations and volunteers from the Junior League of Washington. We’re bracing for a very busy day, but we’re also looking forward to it immensely. We’re all as passionate about the world of books as those attending, and the atmosphere of excitement at this event, with so many incredible authors gathered in one place, is infectious.