Over the past 13 years, the Twin Cities Book Festival has become an energy-filled autumn tradition for many, attracting thousands of attendees (and hundreds of vendors). The festival takes place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 12 at the State Fairgrounds. Here's the lineup of the more notable speakers:
Nicholson Baker, fiction writer and essayist, back for a repeat performance (he was at the festival in 2009, as well); Mircea Cărtărescu, a notable name in his native Romania, where he has won the Romanian Writers' Prize and the Romanian Academy's Prize; Rae Armantrout, winner of both a National Book Critics Circle award and the Pulitzer Prize for poetry; David Wojahn, poet and essayist, originally from St. Paul, winner of a Guggenheim fellowship and a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship; Delia Ephron, essayist, screenwriter and sister, of course, of the redoubtable Nora; Howard Mohr, busily talking Minnesotan; Ytasha L. Womack, filmmaker and author, and David Wiesner, three-time Caldecott-winning illustrator (and writer) for "Tuesday," "The Three Pigs," and "Flotsam."
Also …
• "Here Comes the Sun: A Young Family's Journey Through Cancer," by Minneapolis writer Brian Lucas, has been published. Lucas will launch the book at 6 p.m. Sept. 23 at Open Book, 1011 Washington Av. S., Mpls., and will sign books at 2 p.m. Sept. 28 at Birchbark Books, Mpls., at 7 p.m. Oct. 8 at the Bookcase of Wayzata, and at 7 p.m. Oct. 9 at Common Good Books in St. Paul. His book tells the story of his wife, Betsy, who was diagnosed with leukemia, and her long battle back to health.
• Two young-adult books by Mary Casanova have been brought back in print by the University of Minnesota Press. "Moose Tracks" and its sequel, "Wolf Shadows," are set in northern Minnesota.
• "Wolves," a debut novel by Cary J. Griffith, has been published by Adventure Publications. Griffith is the author of two books of nonfiction, "Lost in the Wild," and "Opening Goliath," winner of a Minnesota Book Award.
• "Slip," a collection of poems by Cullen Bailey Burns, has been published by Western Michigan University Press. Burns lives in Minneapolis and teaches at Century College. Her first collection, "Paper Boat," was a finalist for Minnesota Book Award.
• Margaret Hasse's latest poetry collection, "Earth's Appetite" (Nodin Press) will be launched at 7 p.m. Sept. 28 at Open Book in Mpls.
