A Storied History

BOOKMARKS President and Festival Director Debbie Harllee can fondly recall the trip that sparked Winston-Salem’s widely popular annual book event. Harllee had accompanied her  
husband, Vic, on a business trip to Maryland when the couple delighted in discovering Baltimore’s 2000 book festival.

Thanks to the help of countless volunteers, that spark developed into BOOKMARKS, with the first festival being held in Old Salem in 2004 as an expansion of the Junior League of Winston-Salem’s annual Read to Me Festival. Today, BOOKMARKS is a nonprofit street festival that attracts more than 40 authors, illustrators, and chefs to read, discuss, and demonstrate their work.

The festival moved to Historic Bethabara Park in 2005, and in spring 2006, it transitioned into a community-based volunteer organization. Last year, BOOKMARKS boasted approximately 7,500 guests at its fourth festival. Thanks to the generous support of the Winston-Salem Downtown Partnership, as well as area businesses and galleries, BOOKMARKS will move to the Downtown Arts District for 2009.
“The most important goal of the festival is for it to be accessible to everyone — that’s why it remains free to the public,” Harllee notes. “People will come to the festival for one thing — one author, maybe — and then find themselves discovering something or someone else — a new favorite. We want that joy to be available to the entire community.”

Something’s Cooking

For those who prefer pages of recipes to chapters of fiction, BOOKMARKS offers a popular culinary portion dubbed Food for Thought. Coordinator Susan Wiles says this year’s food-focused event will be especially momentous considering the festival’s new proximity to popular downtown dining establishments.

Culinary presentations will take place on the dock of the Millennium Center — a location Wiles says is ideal for large groups. “Years ago it was hard to find so many people that appreciated fine cooking,” she explains. “But the popularity of cooking shows has really brought new attention to cooking and cookbooks.

“Plus,” she adds, “everyone loves free food!”

Each chef will demonstrate two or three recipes, and students from Guilford Technical Community College’s culinary technology program will receive real-world experience as they prepare samples to serve to the audience.

This year’s Food for Thought lineup is exceptional. Birmingham, Alabama, culinary sensation Frank Stitt, author of Bottega Favorita: A Southern Chef’s Love Affair with Italian Food and Southern Table: Recipes and Gracious Traditions from Highlands Bar and Grill, will headline the event, demonstrating fanciful delicacies from his recent book.

Other presenters include Christiane Jory, of The Only 99 Cent Store Cookbook; and Janis Owen, of Cracker Kitchen: A Cookbook in Celebration of Cornbread-Fed, Down Home Family Stories.

Also at the festival this year will be Greensboro resident Chris Smith, the executive chef at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, who will be cooking from his recent work, The Diabetic Chef’s Year-Round Cookbook.

Smith was diagnosed with diabetes in his last few months of culinary school, and has since created a career focused around healthy dining.

If your taste buds can’t wait until festival weekend, be sure to check the BOOKMARKS Web site for a listing of downtown restaurants that will be serving up recipes by these featured chefs in the weeks leading up to the event.

Local Literature

When asked about the literary climate in this state, Ed Southern, executive director of the North Carolina Writers’ Network, is quick to recall writer Lee Smith saying: “You can’t spit in North Carolina without hitting a writer.”

Therefore, it’s only appropriate that a number of the festival’s featured authors hail from the Tarheel State. Winston-Salem is especially well-represented this year: Southern will be reading from his first fiction work, Parlous Angels, and Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald Cotton will share their story, Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption.

Additionally, Kim Underwood and Garnet Goldman, a local husband-wife author-illustrator pair, will be leading a workshop regarding their latest colorful children’s book, The Wonderful World of Sparkle Girl & Doobins, at Young Readers Central.

Underwood, a columnist for the Winston-Salem Journal, crafted the short-story collection from beloved bedtime stories. Readers meet such characters as Jerome, a convertible-driving giraffe who lives in a land where a taste of magic milk can inspire a fanciful adventure.

The book’s theme emphasizes the importance of family and community. “All families have stories, and it’s important to share them with the world,” Underwood notes.

His philosophy is exactly what Southern says earns North Carolina its reputation as the “writingest state.” “When you combine our rich storytelling tradition with the state’s exceptional emphasis
on education, you’re naturally going to get writers.”

For the Kids

“Reading is the great equalizer. No matter who you are and where you come from, if you can read, you can go anywhere,” promises Caron Armstrong, emphasizing the importance of encouraging early reading.

Armstrong is the coordinator for Young Readers Central, which is “almost a mini-version of the larger festival,” she says. Children are given a passport to stamp as they visit the stations, a book bag to help collect their goodies, as well as a reading- or writing-related surprise.

The headliner of this year’s children’s event is Sonia Manzano — best known as Maria from Sesame Street. Manzano will share her latest book, A Box Full of Kittens, as well as readings from her first work, No Dogs Allowed. Manzano’s visit is sponsored by The Hispanic League of Winston-Salem. “One of the major goals of BOOKMARKS is to partner with other community organizations to co-support each other,” Armstrong says.

Texas Pete is sponsoring Frances O’Roark Dowell, author of Phineas L. MacGuire Blasts Off, and the Salem College Center for Women Writers will present professor John Hutton, who returns this year with Christmas Maus: Another Small Tale of Sisters House in Salem.

In addition to author presentations, Young Readers Central will feature a SciWorks-sponsored Phineas L. MacGuire Lab, which will teach kids about science topics like rockets and volcanoes. “If we match authors with community organizations, learning can last throughout the day,” Armstrong says.

And Young Readers Central isn’t just for kids. Of special interest to middle-schoolers and teens, Carole Boston Weatherford will showcase her newest book, Becoming Billie Holiday. The presentation will be accompanied by a jazz ensemble and followed by a Teen Reader’s Theatre event. Also, a panel discussion titled The New Frontier: Graphic Novels, Webcomics and Manga will feature cartoon artists, retailers, and professors in the industry, and cater to graphic novel fans of all ages.

Lending A Hand

Perhaps one of the more impressive aspects of the BOOKMARKS festival is the sheer manpower that backs it. Volunteer Coordinator Delaine Weddle began her involvement with the festival two years ago. “I deal a lot with volunteers in my day job at Family Services, so I’m used to seeing people give of their time,” Weddle says. “The team behind BOOKMARKS is magnificent, though. They’re from all walks of life, and they come back year after year.”

Last year’s festival garnered the help of 200 volunteers, and Weddle says she anticipates similar numbers this year. Although most opportunities are shifts, Weddle also notes that many volunteers will choose to work all day. “It’s remarkable to see how well so many people can come together to make a festival look effortless to the outside world.”

If you’re interested in volunteering for this year’s BOOKMARKS festival, call Delaine Weddle at 336-775-5878, or go to bookmarksbook festival.org. Children under age 18 must have adult permission.

2009 Highlights

• This year’s Honorary Chair is David Payne. Payne, author of Back to Wando Passo and four previous novels, is a North Carolina native who lives in Hillsborough. He teaches in the MFA Creative Writing Program at Queens University of Charlotte, and will serve as writer-in-residence at Hollins University.
• Sonia Manzano, also known as Maria from Sesame Street, will be presenting her latest book, A Box Full of Kittens.
• Frank Stitt, a James Beard Award-winning chef, will be demonstrating recipes from his latest cookbook.
• 2008 Pulitzer Prize recipient Daniel Walker Howe (sponsored by WFU Department of History) will be reading from What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815–1848.
• Glinda Bridgforth (sponsored by Truliant), author of Girl, Get your Credit Straight! will offer timely information about ditching debt, mending credit, and building a financial future.
• Deutsche Bank Alex. Brown has provided a sponsorship for 2009 in honor of Vic Harllee. The gift will bring Justin Fox, economics and business columnist for Time magazine, to the festival to present his acclaimed book, The Myth of the Rational Market.
• A number of workshops will be offered to teach writing and publishing skills. Megan Bryant will present Getting Published: Children’s Books; Joseph Mills will discuss What’s in a Name; and Kim Underwood and Garnet Goldman will talk about the publishing process for writers and illustrators.

IF YOU GO

WHEN: Saturday, September 12; 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
WHERE: Downtown Arts District of Winston-Salem
ADMISSION: Free to the public
BOOK SALES AND SIGNINGS: Wake Forest University Stores will be the bookseller for 2009. Additionally, all authors will be offering book-signings in the signings tent.
ALSO: A pre-festival meet-and-mingle Author’s Party will take place Friday, September 11 at 7:30 p.m. in the Associated Artists Gallery at 301 W. Fourth St. A limited number of tickets are available for $30 from Brown Paper Tickets, brownpapertickets.com/event/78033.

For more details, including an updated schedule and membership information, go to bookmarksbookfestival.org.