Fall for the Book brings authors to campus this month

Fall for the Book, Northern Virginia’s oldest and largest festival of literature and the arts, kicks off its 26th season in the City of Fairfax on Saturday, Oct. 12, and runs through Oct. 18.

Global sensation Bonnie Garmus will discuss her breakout debut Lessons in Chemistry on Wednesday, Oct. 16, at 7 p.m. in George Mason University’s Center for the Arts. Closing the festival is Silvia Moreno-Garcia, author of bestsellers like Mexican Gothic, The Daughter of Doctor Moreau, and her newest title The Seventh Veil of Salome.

Other featured writers include this year’s Beck Environmental Lecture featuring Chelsea Henderson, author of Glacial: The Inside Story of Climate Politics, and the finalists for the New American Voices Award: Carrie Sun, author of Private Equity, Alex Espinoza, author of Sons of El Rey, and Shahnaz Habib, author of Airplane Mode: An Irreverent History of Travel.

From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 12 in Old Town Hall, right in the heart of the City of Fairfax’s Fall Festival, there are interactive events for kids on the ground level with Pat Tanumihardja, Debra Shumaker, John Gallagher, and Jamar Nicholas. Upstairs are events perfect for book clubs, including the panel “Murder in the Jazz Age, Twisted Tales, and Devilish Obsessions,” featuring Ananda Lima and George Mason alumna Constance Sayers.

From Oct. 15-18, events will take place on George Mason’s Fairfax Campus, at local Fairfax County Public Library branches, at the Sherwood Center in Fairfax.

On Wednesday, Oct. 16, at 4:30 p.m., four George Mason alumni will read from their work in the Fenwick Library Reading Room: John Copenhaver, author of Hall of Mirrors; Sean Murphy, author of This Kind of Man; Noley Reid, author of Origami Dogs; and K.E. Semmel, author of The Book of Losman. Copenhaver’s novel investigates the mysterious death of a popular novelist in McCarthy-era Washington, D.C. Murphy’s story collection investigates masculinity in 21st-century America. Reid’s story collection celebrates the connection between humans and their dog companions. Semmel’s novel interrogates how far a lonely man will go to feel complete.

All events are free and open to the public thanks to the generous support of sponsors including George Mason, Fairfax County Public Library, the Fairfax Library Foundation, the City of Fairfax, and the National Endowment for the Arts. However, headline and virtual events require free tickets, which you can reserve on Eventbrite.