Virginia Festival of the Book

Date and Time

Fri, Mar 20, 2026 - Sun, Mar 22, 2026

Details

This beloved annual tradition brings together writers and readers to promote books, reading, literacy, and literary culture. Themed broadly around the concept of “Revolutions” in recognition of the America’s 250th anniversary, the 2026 Virginia Festival of the Book will include a stellar slate of authors and events, bringing out the best in poetry, children’s literature, fiction and non-fiction.

A program of Virginia Humanities, the Festival brings together writers and readers to promote and celebrate books, reading, literacy, and literary culture over five days in Charlottesville and Albemarle County every March.

Since the very first Festival in 1995, we have presented a captivating list of speakers, from international bestsellers to topical specialists to debut authors.

But don’t take our word for it! Explore our Festival archive and you’ll see more than a few familiar names, including Baldacci, Grisham, Karon, Lowry, Shetterly, Stiglitz, and many others.

Highlighting hundreds of speakers and their books, each Festival typically includes approximately 200 programs—from panel discussions to children’s storytime—for all ages, reading levels, and interests.

The majority of our programs are free to attend. Completely free. For most programs, you don’t need to buy a ticket or a book—you don’t even have to read a book to take part. All you need is your curiosity.

Festival events are in-person, with many live-streamed to reach Virginians where we are.