Great Valley Bookfest

The Great Valley Bookfest was created to promote the written word and celebrate literacy in California’s Central Valley. This annual festival features many authors, crafters, artists, book sellers, and food vendors.

The organization also hosts an annual bookmark contest during the spring, and the winners’ bookmarks are featured in the Bookfest a few months later. The Bookfest is free to the public and includes author presentations, workshops, a parade, performances, and even cooking demonstrations. Writers and book lovers are all welcome and may sell their own books or resell other books as long as they have the proper licensing.

The Great Valley Bookfest also gives out three Literacy Hero Awards to three people who promote literacy in extraordinary ways in San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties. The organization has received a lot of recognition and support for its work to spotlight those individuals and organizations that promote literacy programs in the region. On the group website, members of the community can nominate potential Literacy Heroes and learn more about past Literacy Heroes.

The event is held at the Promenade Shops at Orchard Valley Shopping Center (also known as the Bass Pro Center), at 280 Lifestyle Road in Manteca. with a massive parking lot! The parking lot will be filled with tented stages for presentations and workshops, gourmet food trucks will line “Knosh Boulevard,” and the rest of the space will accommodate a wide variety of vendors.

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