NEWBURYPORT — Locals shared their excitement to see reading, bestselling authors and small-business bookshops celebrated next month during the 21st annual Newburyport Literary Festival.
“It’s a boon for Newburyport and it’s a boon for just the promotion of reading and intellectual ideas,” Sue Little of Jabberwocky Bookshop said.
The festival, organized by the Newburyport Literary Association, will take place Friday, April 24, through Sunday, April 26, in various locations downtown and online.
It’s official bookstores are Jabberwocky Bookshop and The Book Shop of Beverly Farms.
Little said the festival brings in thousands of folks to the downtown area.
“Being able to promote reading is always such a good thing,” Little said.
Chamber of Commerce President Nancy Caswell said she thinks any festival “especially one that is like the Literary Festival is definitely important to the community.”
“I think it supports our small-business bookstores like Illume and Jabberwocky,” Caswell said.
Seeing the festival’s opening ceremony is being held at Firehouse Center for the Arts on April 24 at 6 p.m., the theater should also see a boost, added Caswell, who serves as the theater’s treasurer.
“Any marketing that we can do to attract more foot traffic is helpful,” Caswell said.
Following the ceremony, North Shore artist and designer Michael Updike, son of literary legend John Updike, will discuss the “Selected Letters of John Updike” by James Schiff with The New York Times Book Review critic Alexandra Jacobs.
On Saturday, April 25, festival events begin at 8:30 a.m. with Breakfast with the Poets and continue throughout the day.
The authors and poets include Catherine Newman, Annie Hartnett, Andre Dubus III, Marianne Leone, Gish Jen, Alan Lightman, Christine Pride and Jenna Blum sharing their thoughts.
Planned panels will focus on romance novels, humor and immigration, and Caleb Gayle will speak as part of a session sponsored by the Massachusetts Center for the Book. A Melopoeia for Charles Coe will be performed by the original Diminished Prophets, and Newburyport High School’s Poetry Soup students will read original works.
Saturday evening’s event, Women’s Voices of Rebellion and Revolution, features readings of women’s writing at 7 p.m. at Firehouse Center for the Arts.
Virtual programming on Sunday, April 26, runs from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and will include a writing workshop with Sara Reish Desmond, a conversation with local tennis journalist Christopher Clarey and panels on writing for both young adult and adult audiences.
Speaking about the Newburyport Literary Association, she said that its staff and board “works really hard, and they are great community members.”
“The chamber’s always just happy to support,” Caswell said.
On a personal level, the owner of Brine restaurant shared she is very excited for the festival, explaining that her restaurant runs a book club.
“Our current book club members, some of them went to a recent event with Ellen Hildebrand at Mission Oak, and they all spoke very highly at the event and thought it was great” Caswell said referring to bestselling fiction author of more than 30 books Elin Hilderbrand.
Little said she sees a large amount of the shop’s customers coming in to enjoy the offerings each year.
“It’s just a fun day of people actually being with an author, not with a screen in between, you know,” Little said. “People today are used to going and listening to podcasts or listening to an author speak online, and oftentimes you can type your questions in and you feel like you’re connected, but it’s not quite the same thing as being in the actual room and talking to the author.”
The festival is made possible through the generosity of founding sponsors the Newburyport Bank and the Institution for Savings.
Additional support is provided by The Charles & Marianne Small Charitable Foundation, The Friends of the Newburyport Public Library, Burch Ives Family Charitable Foundation, Rotary Club of Newburyport, Hogrefe Publishing, the Cultural Councils of Newburyport, West Newbury, Newbury, Merrimac, Groveland and Georgetown, and Bradford & Bigelow printers, along with many other supporters.
For a complete schedule and list of authors, moderators, poets, and historians, visit newburyportliteraryfestival.org. Follow the festival on Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, LinkedIn or X for updates.