The second annual Sacramento Book Festival will feature more than 125 local authors reading, participating on panels and introducing themselves to Sacramento readers. Photo courtesy of Sacramento Book Festival

SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) - From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 31, the California Writers Club Sacramento Branch will launch the second annual Sacramento Book Festival at the Shepard Garden & Arts Center, next to McKinley Park, in East Sacramento.

As part of the free festival’s focus on literacy, organizers will run a book drive for new and gently used children’s books for the Mustard Seed School. This Sacramento Loaves & Fishes program is a free private school for children ages 3 to 15 years old who are currently homeless.

The Sacramento Book Festival committee will also welcome the Sacramento Literacy Foundation to the event, an organization whose mission is to help all children in the community read at grade-level. Also, there will be 916 Ink, an arts-based creative writing and literacy nonprofit organization helping Sacramento youth discover a love of reading.

The festival will feature more than 125 local authors reading, participating on panels and introducing themselves to Sacramento readers.

The roster includes New York Times bestselling thriller author James Rollins, award-winning mystery author Catriona McPherson, crime fiction writers Claire Booth and James L'Etoile, among many others who Sacramento-area readers will recognize.

In addition, there will be children’s activities, a food truck and a scavenger hunt with prizes.

Event sponsors include 916 Ink, Amatoria Fine Art Books, Avid Reader on Broadway, Black Women Write, Capital Books on K, Capitol Crimes, Elk Grove Writers Guild, Friends of the Sacramento Library - Book Den, the Mustard Seed School, Northern California Publishers and Authors, Northern California Romance Writers, Paper Lantern Writers, Sacramento Literacy Foundation, Sacramento Public Library, A Seat at the Table Books and Underground Books.

 

The second annual Sacramento Book Festival roster includes New York Times bestselling thriller author James Rollins, award-winning mystery author Catriona McPherson, crime fiction writers Claire Booth and James L'Etoile, among many others who Sacramento-area readers will recognize. Photo courtesy of Sacramento Book Festival

The authors, by neighborhood, are as follows:

River Park authors Scott Coatsworth authors Ann Naimark and Ann Da Vigo.

Fair Oaks authors Tim Schooley and Sandra Navarro.

Curtis Park/Downtown Sacramento authors Michael Gorman, Grete Brewer-Bakken, Brian Buhl, Melissa Buhl, Chance Knight, Linda Townsdin and Jeff Galvin.

Carmichael author Ann Chehak and Antelope author Candice Burney.

West Sacramento author Jeyzel Rossi and American River author Bonnie Blue.

Gold River author Luanne Oleas and Rancho Cordova author Jill Davis.

Elk Grove authors George Hahn, Rosemary Covington, Betsy Schwarzentraub, Nafisa Kahn and Bryan Hill.

East Sacramento authors Anara Guard and Brian Reisinger.

Land Park authors Ron Javor, Jennifer Morita and Michele Drier. Pocket authors Eileen Hook and Dorothy Rice.

Arden Arcade/Arden authors Lynda Smith Hoggan, Amy Rogers, Brenda Davis and Gloria Galloway.

South Sacramento authors Pat Henshaw and Maryalice Tomoeda.

Orangevale authors Phyllis Laatsch and Britney Nida.

Davis authors Judith Starkston, Lally Pia, Sharon McDonell and Justine Villanueva.

Woodland authors Belinda Sikes and Lisa Montanaro.

Roseville authors Betsy Miller, Madeline Olson and Sharon Fujimoto. Rocklin authors Lois Butcher and Kate Moore.

Placerville author Terol McCullar and Granite Bay authors Ryan Hoyt, Donna Wierzbowski, Cindy Sample and Bill George.

El Dorado Hills authors Jenifer Rowe, James L’Etoile and Bitsy Kemper.

Folsom author Joanne Kwan and Winters author Catriona McPherson.