Finally, the list of authors scheduled to appear at this year’s National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. has been posted to the website. I’ve never been to the festival, but have been planning to go this time round. Unfortunately, there’s no one on the list that I’m overwhelmingly excited about. I’ve read books by most of the authors listed under Fiction and Fantasy (with an emphasis on the fiction side – specifically, Geraldine Brooks, Julia Glass, Khaled Hosseini, Sharyn McCrumb and Alice McDermott), but didn’t even recognize any of the authors categorized as Family. None of the Teens and Childrens authors particuarly appeal to me and since I’m not a mystery/thriller reader, I don’t have any interest in those writers, either. Under History and Biography, I was pleased to see Nathaniel Philbrick included, and have heard enough about Joan Didion to be intrigued by her name on the list.

Still, all in all, I’m wishing I’d attended last year’s festival instead, and my anticipation of this year’s event has been lessened by my lack of any real enthusiasm.