2010
HIGHLIGHTS
Sunny skies and more than 130 authors and presenters greeted 25,000 festival-goers on Saturday, October 16, 2010, for a day of presentations, writing workshops, interactive kids’ events, a street festival with more than 60 exhibitors, and a live music stage. In the afternoon, close to 4000 seats were filled each hour as people flocked to hear presentations and discussions by world-renowned authors and thinkers.
Some of the most popular sessions of the day included Dennis Lehane and Tom Perrotta discussing the adaptations of their books into films; Bill Bryson and Tony Hiss talking about mindfulness at home and away; “Good Idea!,” where David Edwards, Neri Oxman, Steven Johnson, and Atul Gawande wowed everyone with ideas ranging from whiffable chocolate to simple checklists to buildings that breathe, and “The Economy,” where Joseph Stiglitz, Michael Porter, and Juliet Schor debated what went wrong and how to fix it.
Standing room only crowds were also eager to hear authors discuss everything from ancient history to sports writing. And while many sessions were entertaining enough to elicit belly laughs, the poignant stories told by Marianne Leone, Nick Flynn, and Jerald Walker at the Memoir panel moved some festival-goers to tears.
The future was on everyone’s minds at BBF 2010, and sessions such as “The Tendencies of Technology,” “Internet or Not,” and “The Novel: A Prognosis” asked where we are, where we have been, and where we are going when it comes to books, writing, and technology. Luminaries like Nicholas Negroponte, David Shields, and Nicholas Carr attempted answers.
The culmination of our very first One City One Story project drew several hundred people who were eager to discuss “The Smile on Happy Chang’s Face” with author Tom Perrotta.
Joyce Carol Oates delivered the Keynote, first reading an unsettling story from her new collection Sourland and then engaging in a contentious and at times unintentionally hilarious conversation with moderator Faith Salie.
We added many more sessions for kids in 2010, including a Kids’ Keynote presented by Jeff Kinney, the bestselling author of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Jeff delighted his eager young audience with a behind-the-scenes look at the making of Greg Heffley’s beloved diary as well as some sneak peeks at the much-anticipated Diary of a Wimpy Kid #5.
We ended the day with a literary rock star revue where the ebullient Steve Almond hosted the most writerly group of rockers we’ve ever seen. People went home exhausted but happy from BBF 2010.
2010 AUDIO
Audio is not available for the following sessions:
Building Books: Host: Deborah Davidson
Fun with Fancy Nancy: Robin Preiss Glasser, Jane O’Connor, Host: Maija Meadows
Guided Open Mic: Host: Steve Almond
Hidden Treasures: How Much Is It Worth? Boston Antiquarian Book Fair
History, Mystery & Art: Elyssa East, Erica Hirshler, Da Zheng, Host: Megan Marshall
Keynote: Joyce Carol Oates, Host: Faith Salie (Video)
Kids’ Keynote: Jeff Kinney (Video)
Poetry of Our Times: Elizabeth Alexander, Edward Hirsch, Ellen Doré Watson, Host: Lloyd Schwartz
Spoken Word: FreeVerse!
StoryPlace: Timothy Basil Ering, Rose Lewis, Brian Lies, Scott Magoon, Rob Scotton
Writer Idol: Host: Chris Castellani
2010 PRESENTERS
Susan Abulhawa
Caroline Alexander
Elizabeth Alexander
Steve Almond
Alicia Anstead
Dan Ariely
Tom Ashbrook
Jenny Attiyeh
Helene Atwan
Brunonia Barry
Kate Bernheimer
Nick Bilton
Lisa Birnbach
David Boeri
Jared Bowen
Robin Brenner
Howard Bryant
Bill Bryson
Ty Burr
Stephen Burt
Thanassis Cambanis
Nicholas Carr
Noni Carter
Kristin Cashore
Richard Cohen
Justin Cronin
Callie Crossley
Jef Czekaj
Kathryn Davis
Alan Dershowitz
Elyssa East
David Edwards
Hallie Ephron
Timothy Basil Ering
Haleh Esfandiari
Noah Feldman
Joshua Ferris
Tyler Florence
Nick Flynn
Alexis Frederick-Frost
Stefanie Friedhoff
Donna Garlough
Atul Gawande
Robin Preiss Glasser
Myla Goldberg
Christina Gonzalez
Allegra Goodman
Andrew Gross
Jennifer Haigh
Eric Haseltine
Edward Hirsch
James Hirsch
Erica Hirshler
Tony Hiss
John Hockenberry
A.M. Homes
Ann Hood
Michelle Hoover
Joel Hyatt
Marlon James
Gish Jen
Steven Johnson
Peter Kadzis
Daphne Kalotay
Meg Kearney
Kevin Kelly
Chip Kidd
Jeff Kinney
David Kirkpatrick
Jarrett Krosoczka
Eric Kuhne
Nicole Lamy
Kathryn Lasky
Dennis Lehane
Marianne Leone
Rose Lewis
Brian Lies
Kelly Link
Bill Littlefield
Scott Magoon
Megan Marshall
Simon Mawer
Andrew McAfee
Jill McDonough
Maija Meadows
Richard Michelson
Katie Smith Milway
Mark Moffett
Nick Montfort
Dambisa Moyo
Nicholas Negroponte
Joyce Carol Oates
Jane O’Connor
Neri Oxman
Joan Parker
Jay Parini
Mitali Perkins
Tom Perrotta
Michael F. Porter
Henriette Lazaridis Power
William Powers
David Rakoff
Joanna Smith Rakoff
Aaron Renier
John Rich
Nir Rosen
Moshe Safdie
Faith Salie
Michael Sandel
Stacy Schiff
Juliet Schor
Kathryn Schulz
Lloyd Schwartz
Rob Scotton
James Sebenius
Amartya Sen
David Shields
Brando Skyhorse
Sarah Sogigian
Jessica Stern
Joseph Stiglitz
Francisco Stork
Sir Peter Stothard
Maria Tatar
Christina Thompson
Lionel Vital
Jerald Walker
Andy Wasif
Ellen Doré Watson
Raffi Yessayan
Kevin Young
Robin Young
Da Zheng
©Boston Book Festival
