Festival of the Book: From crime to kid lit

Everything from historical novels to hip-hop is on the schedule for the 15th annual Virginia Festival of the Book.
The festival, set for March 18 to 22 in a variety of Charlottesville locations, will start at 7:30 a.m. March 18 with the Business Breakfast at the Omni Charlottesville Hotel. The featured speaker is behavioral economics expert Dan Ariely, author of the bestseller “Predictably Irrational.”
Most of the festival’s events are free, but at $30 the breakfast is one of the handful of ticketed events.
The opening ceremony at noon March 18 will feature author Catherine Gourley. At 8 p.m., “Interludes and Latitudes: The Poetry of Kevin Hart and Paul Muldoon” will bring two internationally renowned poets to the Culbreth Theatre stage.

Among the festival’s new attractions this year, unveiled Wednesday, will be a taping of the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities’ radio show “With Good Reason,” led by host Sarah McConnell at 8 p.m. March 19 at the Culbreth, which will feature her conversation with authors Alan Cheuse and Mary Doria Russell about the art of historical fiction.
Also part of the festivities will be commemorations of Abraham Lincoln and Edgar Allan Poe, both born 200 years ago; a trio of events focusing on the health and future of the world’s oceans that includes an event with famed marine biologist Sylvia Earle; and three panels on book collecting.
The power of words in the performing world also will be featured in several events.
March 19 will bring a Late-Night Story Slam to R2 at Rapture. The story competition will feature true tales told by authors, musicians, poets and performance artists.

Former U.S. and Virginia poet laureate Rita Dove will team up with Dave Matthews Band violinist Boyd Tinsley at 8 p.m. March 20 at the Paramount Theater to present “Another Music,” a program introducing Dove’s latest book of poems, “Sonata Mulattica,” and exploring the life of 19th-century violinist George Bridgetower. Tickets are $10.
“A Night of Crime: S.J. Rozan, Dan Fesperman, Charles Todd and Denise Hamilton,” at 8 p.m. March 20 at the Culbreth, will dive into the world of writing thrillers and crime fare.
The daylong StoryFest on March 21 will offer a variety of activities for children and their families to attend together.
One choice, “Hip-Hop Speaks to Children,” set for March 21 at Carver Recreation Center, is presented by Piedmont Council of the Arts and Charlottesville Parks and Recreation. It traces the power of poetry as a communication tool from Langston Hughes to Queen Latifah.
Drum Call with William “Whit” Whitten, Damani Harrison and Troy Stephen will take part in the event, which will expose young readers to the works of respected poets while catching parents and grandparents up on hip-hop’s contributors to the genre. There will be music, drumming, dancing and plenty of stories and poetry.

On March 21, “WKRP in Cincinnati” and “Frank’s Place” star Tim Reid will discuss his new book, “Tim and Tom: An American Comedy in Black and White,” at 2 p.m. at the Culbreth.
At 8 p.m. that evening, “Truth, Justice and the American Way: An Evening with John Grisham and Stephen L. Carter” will bring the two lawyers and authors to the Culbreth stage.
For the first time, the festival will offer a headline event pass that will ensure seating at several in-demand events at the Culbreth.
Passes are available for $15 each for the Muldoon and Hart event on March 18, the Russell and Cheuse event on March 19, the crime writers’ event on March 20 and the

Grisham and Carter event on March 21. There also is a $50 package of passes to all four events.
This year’s other ticketed events include the CrimeWave Mystery Luncheon with author Brad Meltzer at noon March 21 for $50 and the Authors’ Reception at 6 p.m. March 21 for $35.
Waiting lists are available for tickets to two sold-out events — the Festival Luncheon with Adriana Trigiani, author of the “Big Stone Gap” series, and “Wine and Words” with Trigiani and author David Baldacci, an alumnus of the University of Virginia’s law school.

Most of the festival’s events are free. Topics run the gamut from how to get a book published to why baseball is a storyteller’s game. There will be readings, discussions and panels on fantasy, mysteries, poetry, education, publishing, sports, children’s literature and a range of cultural and gender interests.
The festival is produced by the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities. Book lovers can keep up with festival events, plan schedules and reserve tickets at http://www.vabook.org.