Lt. Governor, LEH Announce New Partnership for Louisiana Book Festival

At a September 25 press conference, Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne announced a new partnership between the Louisiana Book Festival and the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities. Along with major funding support for the 2014 festival, the LEH will produce this year’s festival program, which features an original painting by the late artist George Rodrigue, a longtime supporter of the Louisiana Book Festival.

“The Book Festival is one of my favorite events each year. It continues to grow as we celebrate Louisiana’s incredible literary heritage as well as a new generation of writers,” Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne said. “We are excited to partner with LEH to promote this year’s festival and make it an even more successful event.”

The 2014 Louisiana Book Festival takes place Saturday, Nov. 1 at Capitol Park in Baton Rouge. Featured writers include James Carville and Mary Matalin, Rick Bragg, Jill McCorkle, Michael Pitre and Zachary Richard. The day’s events include book-related activities for children and teens, as well as poetry readings led by Louisiana Poet Laureate Ava Leavell Haymon, and a ceremony to recognize 2014 Louisiana Writer Award recipient Darrell Bourque.

This year’s free program will include the full Fall 2014 issue of Louisiana Cultural Vistas, the LEH’s award-winning quarterly magazine dedicated to the history and culture of Louisiana. The issue features excerpts from recent books by authors appearing at the festival, including Michael Martin’s new book on Senator Russell Long, and New York Times columnist Charles Blow’s memoir of his childhood in North Louisiana. Festivalgoers will receive free copies of the program on November 1. “This partnership combines the outstanding work of the Lt. Governor, the State Library and the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities to promote literacy in our state,” said LEH Interim President/Executive Director Miranda Restovic. “We’re proud to continue our support for the festival and to publish this special edition of Louisiana Cultural Vistas.”

On the cover of the program, a painting by George Rodrigue, Louisiana Legends 1991, shows the artist alongside Dr. Michael Debakey, Al Hirt, Gen. Robert H. Barrow and Bob Petit. The painting was provided by The George Rodrigue Foundation for the Arts. Louisiana Public Broadcasting commissioned the painting for its Louisiana Legends Gala.

For more information about the 2014 Louisiana Book Festival, visit LouisianaBookFestival.org. For more information about Louisiana Cultural Vistas magazine, visit www.louisianaculturalvistas.org. Follow @LABookFest and @KnowLouisiana and use #2014LBF.