To make a case that the state’s signature literary event is not totally Austin-centric, the organizers of the Texas Book Festival headed down I-35 to San Antonio a couple of weeks ago to announce the featured authors and unveil the festival’s poster by artist Marc Burkhardt.
Chair Ron Weiss explained the board wants to increase the festival’s presence outside of Austin, and San Antonio is a logical choice. Reading Rock Stars, the book festival’s program pairing readings by authors for students in economically-disadvantaged schools, already is associated with Ira Ogden and Will Rogers Elementary Schools.
Plus, Weiss said he loves San Antonio and regards it as “the most under-rated city in the country…. I love getting lost on the river and am pining for fast rail so I can eat at Auden’s,” – a particularly nice compliment coming from the owner of Jeffrey’s Restaurant and Bar.
Hosted by Ocho at the Havana, the affair was nice but small. Representatives from Texas Monthly and Steve Bennett of the San Antonio Express-News was there, along with several authors from San Antonio: Susan Toomey Frost, Sherry Matthews, Bill Fisher and June Naylor.
While the event did not make a huge splash, the nod was significant.
And it’s almost time to hit I-35 for Austin for the multitude of readings set for the weekend of October 22.
October 12 Update: Aether Magazine, a new arts publication in Austin, includes a spread about Marc Burkhardt.
Postcards from Barton Springs 