THE DAY BEFORE
One of my favorite parts of the festival is the day before the official festival. I enjoy seeing the presentation of the Hefner Heitz Kansas Book award. This year it went to Tim Basom for his fictional work “Continental Drift.” Next year’s winner will be in the non-fiction category. In 2028, it will be poetry. Then the cycle repeats every year: fiction, non-fiction, and poetry.
While this award is given for excellent writing, the meaning behind it is to preserve writing. I’m touched by the Heinz family story behind the award about the grandma who had 60 years of manuscripts that went up in flames after she passed away. Nobody considered the value of preserving them for future generations. Each year I hear that story, my dedication to promote reading, literature, and fight book bans is renewed! The Pickleball Librarian personally thanks the Hefner Heitz family.
As a book reviewer who makes video reviews and writes reviews for the This Is Topeka newspaper, which gets over 100,000 page views per month, I know a lot of people receiving one of the Kansas Notable Books awards. This is a more laid-back time, and I’m honored to have a couple of authors share with me how important the work I do is. It’s their work that inspires me and countless readers everywhere! Thank you so much for capturing the human condition and experience.
Another shout out goes to Washburn’s Dean of Libraries Sean Bird. I’ve known him since my time in library school over twenty years ago, and he’s always been a bibliophile. Last week, I heard him speak three times and each one was profound. At the Kansas Notable Books awards, his words were profound explaining how people were able to put down technology and go back in time and just read a real book to make a magical connection. I’m not able to capture his wise words, but the next time you hear him speaking in public, do yourself a favor and listen!
NOW FOR THE BIG DAY!
The 2026 Kansas Book Festival was amazing! The new director Lara Avery was able to make this one of the best ever!
An immediate improvement I’ve noticed was the social media presence. Their Facebook page was more engaged than ever! The regular posts promoting the event motivated others to also promote the event. I’ve never seen so many people engaged and promoting their presentations. Kansas reads!
As a mother of a two year old, Lara had the kids on her mind and this year’s festival delivered for those young readers. Sure, they may not have the patience and desire to sit through panels like most adults, but they are the future readers of Kansas! We must nourish and cherish a desire to read in them. Kansas reads!
Like he’s been doing for several years, Kyler Carpenter kept the local performance stage running smoothly. He is a Topeka music treasure and has mentored and supported the musical growth of countless musicians. One college student, who used to perform at Kyler‘s kid jams as a young child, walked by. Kyler pointed out how the student is now performing in a local band that evening. A handful of festival goers attended that band’s show after the festival.
The story time and crafts section offered kids a huge selection to listen or get hands on. I’m a huge fan of Elyssa Gavin’s inspirational story of Juno. That story should inspire anyone.
The exhibition section was plentiful! I kept wanting to say hi to my friend Dané Shobe from Sun Hero, but each time I was in the vicinity, he was engaged in conversation with readers. That’s great! It’s also the highest level of engagement I’ve seen at this book festival. Kansas reads!
Now let’s talk about the amazing programs! As an experienced attendee, I can tell when people did their homework. I especially love moderators who were in love with the art of those they interviewed. My biggest complaint for the panels is I’m not able to clone myself to attend multiple ones at the same time.
“Creepy Small Towns”- It was great to see established and best selling Alex Grecian paired up with debut author Chase Dearinger. I enjoyed hearing more about their writing processes and thinking about how in certain worlds weird can be normal.
Alex is one of those writers who writes without a plan or outline. He says he does this so he can be completely surprised, and if he’s surprised, so is the reader! In a way Alex is like a jazz musician. Jazz musicians usually play with only chord progressions and improvise as they go.
My older son is an accomplished jazz musician in Madison Wisconsin and told me he cannot listen to jazz while he’s concentrating on something. He would have to stop and listen because he doesn’t know where the jazz musician is going to go next. It’s that surprise element, and Alex has that. (See my previous review for why Alex is a Topeka Literary Treasure).
The most fun presentation for an adult was “The Art of Romance.” It had an 18+ warning on the program. Yeah, it was SPICY.
It was also just plain fun and informative! I’m now looking forward to reading more about Lisa Rayne’s book about a black Highlander and Adib Khorram’s work with Authors Against Book Bans. I’ve enjoyed Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone’s “The Fundamentals of a Being a Good Girl.” Their book inspired my personal saying of “take that DINK like a good girl.” Nothing like mixing pickleball with romance. I had to get a picture with them and the shirt design they inspired.
Some of my notes from that program include how fast can we make them bone, create a slow burn- we don’t want them to come together too quick, splash around in the aftermath, steel rod covered in velvet, and many more! Romance authors need many words for body parts- flowery words and sometimes actual medical terms. A lot of this is based on the character speaking.
That was a fun presentation! Also mad props to librarian Autumn Frieli. She had great questions to keep the panel engaged. You can tell she is a reader in that genre. “My reading choices prepared me for this.”
Please keep in mind that I am a book nerd. I’ve been attending the Kansas Book Festival since its inaugural event at the state capital. I attend at least a dozen book festivals around the country each year! For a free one day event, this is one of the best! If you missed it this time around, be sure to catch it next year. Kansas reads!
“Poets In Public”- I loved how Huscar Medina views poetry as a public service towards making society a better place. I loved how Linzi Garcia encourages us to find the beauty in our world. Great job keeping things flowing Melissa Fite Johnson
“Ben Lerner on Transcription”- The keynote speaker was Pulitzer Prize finalist Ben Lerner. Eric McHenry was the perfect moderator due to their personal relationships. It was great to hear about Ben’s past. I also loved to hear him reading from his new book.
One thing he said so intellectually deep is how writers seemed to be reaching into the ether and listening to the voices there. “In the act of composition, you’re pulling voices from that ether.”
“Sunlight Finds You”- I couldn’t be at every presentation, but I heard how folks were saying Laura Moriarty’s book made you feel like you were actually in 1940s Florida. Her research was evident in every detail of her storytelling.
“From Cynicism to Citizenship”- Lindsey Cormack who wrote a book on how to discuss political issues and government with children, YouTuber Mr. Matt Beat, and Kansas Supreme Court Justice Eric Rosen discussed how we can help our government function better. This was informative and gave me some much needed faith in our political system.
“Connecting The Dottes”- This was a great Overview about the historical significance of Wyandotte County. Authors Phyllis Becker, Kathy Allen, and Pat Lawson shared their extensive research about what makes that area so special and their lived experiences. Unfortunately due to time, there was not discussion around how recent economic development will shape the future of the area.
“Why UPK: University Press of Kansas celebrates 80 years”- This program showed what independent presses contribute to society. A lot of their publications are not going to be blockbusters, but they provide knowledge people wouldn’t be able to find elsewhere. The panel discussion led by Director Kelly Chrisman-Jacques was incredibly special featuring Bill Kurtis, Chelan David, Tai Edwards, Clay Wiredtone, Thomas Fox Averill, and Leslie VanHolten.
It was fascinating hearing each author talk about what made UPK special and how working with a small press was more personal and had less roadblocks to publishing than other experiences would provide. The horror stories were laughable, but I can also see how many authors would be discouraged from the publishing process if they went with a different publisher. Lifelong journalist and law school graduate. Bill Kurtis was told he had to find a good writer for his own book by another publishing house. UPK did not doubt his abilities and let him write it himself!
One last declaration! Please keep in mind that I am a book nerd. I’ve been attending the Kansas Book Festival since its inaugural event at the state capital. I’m also a book reviewer who writes reviews for the This Is Topeka newspaper, which gets over 100,000 page views per month. I visit at least a dozen book events around the country each year! For a free one-day book event that provides entertainment and education for all age groups, this is one of the best!! The 2026 event was amazing! If you missed it this time, I’m sure next year would be better.
