New York 42 Brooklyn Book Festival 2026
Brooklyn Borough Hall and surrounding venues, Brooklyn · Organized by Brooklyn Book Festival, Inc. and the Brooklyn Book Festival Literary Council
- Dates
- Sep 20, 2026 – Sep 28, 2026
- Format
- In person
- Where
- Brooklyn Borough Hall and surrounding venues, Brooklyn
- Tickets
- Free
- Organizer
- Brooklyn Book Festival, Inc. and the Brooklyn Book Festival Literary Council
Most literary festivals put a few hundred people in a tent. This one takes over a civic centre, opens eight stages at once, and charges nothing.
The three parts
Bookend events run across Brooklyn from September 20 to September 28, 2026. Children's Day is Saturday, September 26 at Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon St. Festival Day and the Literary Marketplace is Sunday, September 27.
Festival Day
Eight indoor and outdoor stages at Brooklyn Borough Hall, Brooklyn Law School, the Center for Brooklyn History, St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church, Columbus Park and Korean War Veterans Park, with the Literary Marketplace running alongside.
Who is reading
Announced authors include Marlon James, Joyce Carol Oates, Namwali Serpell and Douglas Stuart. The festival is overwhelmingly free to the public.
Festival Day is the famous one and the Bookend events are the better ones. The week before is when individual bookshops, bars and libraries across the borough host single readings — smaller rooms, one author, and no need to choose between eight stages running at the same hour. Plan Sunday backwards from the two panels you actually want and accept that you will miss the rest; the Literary Marketplace is worth an hour on its own, and it is quietest before noon. Borough Hall is on the 2/3, 4/5 and R at Borough Hall and Court Street, which is as easy as arriving anywhere in Brooklyn gets.
Source: Brooklyn Book Festival checked against the source
