The Brooklyn Book Festival brings authors to an international major literary festival from across the globe and as nearby as Brooklyn. The free-to-the-public event is said to reflect the city’s dynamic, cross-cultural book readers and literary community. When the Festival began in 2006, organizers established the credo “hip, smart, diverse.” Those words are part of a mission statement and guide each year in creating a festival that is forward thinking and inclusive. Families can enjoy a full day of readings, workshops, performances, book signings, and art projects with authors and illustrators.

The during the festival, Citywide Bookend events take place in all five boroughs of New York City as well as virtually. These literary themed events are presented in bookstores, clubs, libraries, cultural organizations and performance spaces to collectively create a literary celebration in all five boroughs.

Since the Covid-19 Pandemic, organizers have presented a Virtual Festival Day to include authors and audiences that could not attend in person. The festival also includes a Children’s Day that celebrates childhood reading as an act of love and a learning adventure – parents and guardians reading to children and children meeting their favorite authors.