Third time's the charm?
The New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University, postponed twice by the COVID pandemic, has once again unveiled the lineup of authors for its inaugural weekend, now planned March 10-12. Most of the originally scheduled authors are still on tap to attend, organizers said.
The three-day, in-person celebration will feature more than 100 writers, including national, regional and local names. Blockbuster novelist John Grisham, historian Walter Isaacson and philanthropist Darren Walker will be among those featured.
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 country, 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 Institute from 2013 to 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.
Isaacson serves as co-chair of the event with Cheryl Landrieu. She is co-founder of the festival and the wife of former Mayor Mitch Landrieu.
Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation
Also on the roster is 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.
“The New Orleans Book Festival began in 2010 as a free literary event for families in New Orleans,” Cheryl Landrieu said in a statement. “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 pundits David Brooks, Douglas Brinkley, James Carville and Mary Matalin.
Walter Isaacson on his French Quarter balcony
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 fest features a slate of panel discussions, workshops and book fairs. Family Day at the Festival, a partnership with the New Orleans Office of Youth and Families and Scholastic Corp., will be held March 12 and will focus on literacy advancement and activities for children and families.
All events will take place on Tulane’s Uptown campus.
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.
Then rescheduled for October, the fest was canceled again amid a surge of the delta variant of COVID.
For more information on the New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University, go to bookfest.Tulane.edu.
A full list of authors scheduled to appear at the festival are: Thomas Adams, Iñaki Alday, Kent Babb, Amy Banks, John Barry, Jason Berry, Roy Blount, Jr., Charles Blow, Douglas Brinkley, David Brooks, Sarah Broom, Barri Bronston, William Brumfield, Richard Campanella, James Carville, Edgar Chase, IV, Judy Cooper, Karen Cox, Jarvis DeBerry, Brian DeMare, Justin Devillier, Jeff Duncan, Louis Edwards, Ada Ferrer, Pam Fessler, Charles Figley, Macon Fry, Katherine Gehl, Cheryl Gerber, James Gill, Blake Gilpin, Gary Ginsberg, Malcolm Gladwell, Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., Annette Gordon-Reed, Roberta Brandes Gratz, John Grisham, Kelly Harris, Russel L. Honoré, Andy Horowitz, Ilana Horwitz, Ladee Hubbard, Howard Hunter, Walter Isaacson, T.R. Johnson, Margarita Jover, Molly Kimball, Isaac Knapp, Mitch Landrieu, Kris Lane, Kiese Laymon, Nancy Lemann, Nick Lemann, Michael Lewis, Robert Livingston, Melissa Martin, Mary Matalin, Cappy McGarr, Carol McMichael Reese, Jon Meacham, Marc Morial, Peter S. Onuf, Tom Piazza, Lawrence N. Powell, Sister Helen Prejean, Peter Ricchiuti, Nathaniel Rich, Sandy Rosenthal, Joshua D. Rothman, David Rubenstein, Maurice Carlos Ruffin, Matt Sakakeeny, Kalamu ya Salaam, Julian Sancton, Tom Sancton, Rupert Scofield, Bakari Sellers, Fatima Shaik, Alon Shaya, Clint Smith, Katy Simpson Smith, David Spielman, Michael Tisserand, Poppy Tooker, Sheba Turk, Mark VanLandingham, Kim Vaz-Deville, Cleo Wade, Darren Walker, David Weill, MD, Curtis Wilkie and Jane Wolfe.