Around 50 authors and 20 vendors will be gathered at the Lake Charles Event Center for the South Coast Book Festival this September.
The Literacy Council of Southwest Louisiana will be hosting the second year of the relaunch for the South Coast Book Festival from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 13.
“We are very thankful to the city of Lake Charles and our partners for affording us the opportunity to bring a true literary event here to southwest Louisiana,” Literacy Council Executive Director Tommeka Semien said. “The entire festival is focused on literacy, books, reading and writing. We will have a day of literacy events for both children and adults.”
The event is a rebrand of the former Southwest Louisiana Family Book Festival that was founded over 10 years ago, according to Rose Henny, co-founder of the original festival. Henny and other community volunteers created the event to provide southwest Louisiana additional opportunities to engage in reading and literacy.
After the original event was canceled for a few years following the COVID-19 pandemic and hurricanes Laura and Delta, the Literacy Council of Southwest Louisiana rebranded the event and held the first South Coast Book Festival in 2024.
“For all attendees, the festival will provide them with the opportunity to experience a unique event focused on the literary arts,” the webpage for the festival states. “The South Coast Book Festival (SCBF) will also help guests learn about publications by local and regional authors; products or services from local businesses; and local cultures and traditions.”
The event, which is themed Reading Under the Stars, is free, open to the public and family friendly.
Throughout the festival, Alysson Bourque, Angie Kay Dilmore and Jennifer Blackburn will serve as the featured local authors doing readings and special presentations. Several other local and regional authors will be at the event doing book signings and storytelling sessions.
In addition, the festival will feature a book swap on the second floor of the event center.
“If you have any gently used books that you’d like to share with other people, you can come out and read your books and swap them out for some previously read titles,” Semien said.
There will be a Kid Zone for children with crafts, story times and a pajama time from 2 to 3 p.m.
Several literacy activities are planned during the festival, along with food trucks, sweet treats, vendors, community booths and giveaways.
Mayor Marshall Simien said the event is important because it “promotes a culture of reading.”
“We also want to help inspire the authors,” Simien said. “Writing, especially the way that people write, where they can communicate, not just words, not just scenes, but also the feelings, that’s something that’s going to always be valuable for the human experience wherever we are.”
Those in volunteering or being a part of the event can reach out to Literacy Counciil of Southwest Louisiana Community Engagement Director Iesha Moungle at Iesha Moungle at 337-494-7000 or imoungle@literacyswla.org.