A New Orleans book festival whose debut was crushed in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic has announced a lineup of best-selling authors for the rescheduled event in October.

Blockbuster novelist John Grisham and historian Walter Isaacson will be among more than 100 national and regional writers featured at the 2021 New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University, Oct. 21-23, organizers said on Monday.

The in-person festival will offer a slate of panel discussions, workshops and book fairs. 

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John Grisham

Grisham is a lawyer and the author of 42 novels. He's best known for legal thrillers that line best-seller sales racks across the land, many of which have been adapted for film. 

Isaacson is the former CEO of cable news network CNN with a long career as a journalist. He was president of the Aspen Institue from 2013-2018. A native of New Orleans, he is Leonard A. Lauder Professor of American History and Values at Tulane and the author of biographies of Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci and others. His most recent work is "The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race," which was a New York Times nonfiction No. 1 best-seller when it was released in March.

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Walter Isaacson

Isaacson serves as co-chair of the event with Cheryl Landrieu, co-founder of the New Orleans Book Festival and wife of the former mayor.

Also on the roster is Darren Walker, president of the philanthropic Ford Foundation and author of 2020's "From Generosity to Justice: A New Gospel of Wealth." Walker, a native of Lafayette, is a former lawyer, professor and investment banker.

Darren Walker

Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation 

“The New Orleans Book Festival began in 2010 as a free literary event for families in New Orleans,” Landrieu said in the statement. “After a disappointing cancellation of the event in 2020, we are excited to expand in partnership with Tulane University to create a weekend of events featuring prominent national and local writers and journalists."

Political figures with top-selling books at the Tulane festival will include former mayors Mitch Landrieu and Marc Morial, as well as pundits David Brooks, Douglas Brinkley, James Carville, Mary Matalin and Joe Scarborough.

From the world of New Orleans news media, James Gill, Jeff Duncan, Richard Campanella and Jarvis DeBerry will attend.

Other well-known authors appearing at the festival include Nick Lemann, Michael Lewis, Nathaniel Rich and Malcolm Gladwell. A host of local favorites include Tom Piazza, Tom Sancton, Maurice Carlos Ruffin, Katy Simpson Smith and Sheba Turk. 

The festival was originally planned for March 19-20, 2020, but was canceled when the city began shutting down large gatherings to try to curtail the spread of COVID-19. Organizers had planned for about 30,000 attendees.  Most of the writers who had been scheduled for the 2020 festival are back for this fall's gathering, Isaacson said.

Other authors appearing include Thomas Adams, Iñaki Alday, Tarriona "Tank" Ball, John Barry, Jason Berry, Roy Blount, Jr., Barri Bronston, William Brumfield, Mika Brzezinski, Karen Cox, Brian DeMare, Jennifer Doudna, Charles Figley, Gary Ginsberg, Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., Annette Gordon-Reed, Roberta Brandes Gratz, Kelly Harris, Yuri Herrera, Arlie Hochschild, Andy Horowitz, Howard Hunter, T.R. Johnson, Margarita Jover, Kris Lane, Kiese Laymon, Robert Livingston, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, Cappy McGarr, Admiral Bill McRaven, Jon Meacham, Eric Motley, Peter S. Onuf, Lawrence N. Powell, Sandy Rosenthal, Joshua D. Rothman, David Rubenstein, Matt Sakakeeny, Bakari Sellers, Anne Snyder, Michael Tisserand, Mark VanLandingham, Kim Vaz-Deville, David Weill, M.D., and Curtis Wilkie.

Family Day at the Festival, Oct. 23, will offer readings and activities for children and families, in partnership with the New Orleans Office of Youth and Families and Scholastic Corp. 

The festival is free, but tickets will be required for some events. That information will be released later, the statement from Tulane said. More authors will be added to the roster. Visit bookfest.tulane.edu.