Texas Book Festival Bringing Noted Author To Austin

AUSTIN, TX — Texas Book Festival and BookPeople, in partnership with Black Studies at UT, will present Colson Whitehead to discuss his new book, The Nickel Boys, next month.

The event is scheduled on Tuesday, July 23, at 7 p.m. in the First Baptist Church of Austin. Tickets are now available for $28 per person and include a pre-signed copy of the book.

"In this bravura follow-up to the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning #1 New York Times bestseller The Underground Railroad, Whitehead brilliantly dramatizes another strand of American history through the story of two boys sentenced to a hellish reform school in Jim Crow-era Florida," organizers wrote in describing the author's latest tome.

The book is based on the real story of a Florida reform school that operated for more than 100 years, warping the lives of thousands of children in the process. "The Nickel Boys is a devastating, driven narrative that showcases a great American novelist writing at the height of his powers," the event's organizers wrote.

Tickets to the event at First Baptist Church of Austin are required and are on sale now through BookPeople. The $28 admission price includes one seat at the event and a pre-signed copy of The Nickel Boys. Books will be available for pick up at the event, and will not be available at BookPeople beforehand. Buy tickets HERE.

For more information on the Texas Book Festival, visit www.texasbookfestival.org and follow along on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @texasbookfest.

Courtesy photo.

ABOUT TEXAS BOOK FESTIVAL

With a vision to inspire Texans of all ages to love reading, the Texas Book Festival connects authors and readers through experiences that celebrate the culture of literacy, ideas, and imagination. Founded in 1995 by former First Lady Laura Bush, Mary Margaret Farabee, and a group of volunteers, the nonprofit Texas Book Festival promotes the joys of reading and writing through its annual Festival Weekend, the Texas Teen Book Festival, the Reading Rock Stars Title I elementary school program, the Real Reads Title I middle and high school program, grants to Texas libraries, and year-round literary programming. The Festival is held on the grounds of the Texas Capitol each fall and features more than 275 renowned authors, panels, book signings, cooking demonstrations, and children’s activities.

The 2019 Texas Book Festival Weekend will take place October 26 - 27. Thanks to generous donors, sponsors, and 1,000 volunteers, the Festival remains free and open to the public. Visit www.texasbookfestival.org for more information, and join the conversation using the hashtag #txbookfest on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @texasbookfest.