One of the world’s richest people, the author of a series of best-selling mysteries and a cluster of chefs and food writers have been added to the lineup of the second annual New Orleans Book Festival March 9-11 on Tulane University’s Uptown campus.
Closing out the free event, which Tulane President Michael Fitts has described as “a true Mardi Gras for the mind,” will be a performance by the Preservation All-Stars.
Among the new participants, to be announced Monday, are Bill Gates, a co-founder of Microsoft; Walter Mosley, author of the mystery series featuring the private eye Easy Rawlins; the political commentator James Carville; the New Orleans-born author Sarah M. Broom; the New Yorker writer Malcolm Gladwell; the Tulane business professor Peter Ricchiuti; and Nick Spitzer, the folklorist and host of the podcast “American Routes.”
Sarah M. Broom
Also in the latest lineup are Sharon Epperson, Christopher John Farley, Gary Ginsberg, Claudia Gray, Richard Haass, Douglas Harris, Ben Jealous, Michael Kuczynski, Katy Morlas, Scott Nelson, Savannah Sellers and Ethan Skaggs.
They will discuss and sign their books, joining dozens of scribes whose participation was announced in December. A complete list of writers, as well as other fest information, is at bookfest.tulane.edu. Tulane spokesman Roger Dunaway said a festival schedule will be released soon.
Gates, who left day-to-day involvement with Microsoft in 2008, is a major philanthropist and author. At the festival, he'll speak about books he has written, which include "How to Prevent the Next Pandemic" and "How to Avoid a Climate Disaster."
Best-sellling author Broom won the 2019 National Book Award for her memoir about her family's life in New Orleans, focusing on the impact of Hurricane Katrina, called "The Yellow House."
Although the schedule is not complete, Cheryl Landrieu, the festival’s co-chair, said sessions will go on every hour, perhaps as many as four at one time.
Chef Kevin Belton
Since no New Orleans event is complete without food, the festival will feature culinary personalities, including Times-Picayune columnist, WWL chef and cookbook author Kevin Belton, EatFit's Molly Kimball, chef Alon Shaya, chef Susan Spicer, Bryant Terry and Poppy Tooker. They will participate in discussions and tastings.
The complete lineup is at bookfest.tulane.edu.
March 11 has been designated Family Day, which will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse.
Authors in this activity, sponsored by Scholastic Corp., include Shawn Amos, Shannon Kelley Atwater, Alex Beard, Johnette Downing, Marti Dumas, Matt Haines, Julie Buehrle Luyster, Big Chief Juan Pardo, Michael Strecker, Traci Swain, Valerie Thompkins, Traci N. Todd and Gayle Webre.
The family-centered day is the result of work with teachers, school groups and people involved in literacy programs to focus on the importance of literacy and literacy-themed activities.
“We believe there are authors and discussions for children and adults of all ages,” said Tulane professor Walter Isaacson, the festival co-chair, in a statement.
In an interview, he said the festival “is a way for people from all parts of the city to get together to show that ideas can be fun.”
The event was the brainchild of Cheryl Landrieu, who organized the first citywide book festival when her husband, Mitch Landrieu, was mayor.
When it moved to Tulane last year, “we were blown away by the response. … Pretty much all the seats were filled,” she said in an interview.
In Fitts’ statement, he said this year’s festival should be “an exciting, not-to-be-missed opportunity for the entire community to gather together and grow culturally and intellectually as we celebrate some of the country’s greatest authors.”