Word Week is Noe Valley’s annual literary festival. Dates for 2014 are Sunday, March 16th through Sunday, March 23rd. This is our 9th year. We feature local authors and all of the gatherings are held in and supported by businesses located in Noe Valley. Events are spread daily and nightly throughout the eight days. There are readings and book signings for all ages, toddler to adult. All events are FREE!
We also provide neighbors several ways to get involved! NEW to Word Week this year is a BOOK SWAP which will kick off Tuesday night and a children’s book drive to benefit the CHILDREN’S BOOK PROJECT which will last all week. Start collecting your already read books to donate or to swap. And on Friday night there will be an OPEN MIC night. It’s your chance to be a star!
If you are an author you will want to participate in the AUTHORS FESTIVAL on Saturday and if you are an author of children’s books join the CHILDREN’S BOOK AUTHORS & FANS MIXER at the Sunday Word Week kickoff.
Check out the schedule for more details on all the Word Week events.
Schedule
Sunday, March 16th
A Day Of Noe Valley Children’s Book Authors
Folio Books
3957 24th Street
1:30pm – Storytime with Maria van Lieshout
Author of Catching Kisses, Flight 1-2-3, Hopper & Wilson and more.
Join us at Folio Books for a very special storytime with Maria van Lieshout. A native of the Netherlands, Marie now lives in a creaky 100-year old yellow Victorian in Noe Valley with her husband Peter and their son Max Pelle. Marie will be reading her latest book, Catching Kisses. Catching Kisses is a journey of the heart, as readers young and old follow a handful of kisses around the United States. From San Francisco to New Orleans to New York City, the text and stylized artwork celebrate all the ways kisses are shared. FREE.
2:30pm – Noe Valley Children’s Book Authors & Fans Mixer
Are you a local author of children’s books? Or a children’s book enthusiast? Then this mixer is for you. All are welcome, young and old, to join us for an afternoon of tea, cookies and merriment. If you are a local author in Noe Valley and plan on joining us please contact Folio Books by emailing media@folio.com by February 28th so that we can be sure to have copies of your titles on hand for you to discuss and share with others!
4:30pm – Crafty Show-and-Tell with Mike Adamick
Author of Dad’s Book of Awesome Projects: From Stilts and Superhero Capes to Tinker Boxes and Seesaws, 25+ Fun Do-It-Yourself Projects for Families
Join us at Folio Books to hear local author Mike Adamick talk about his favorite projects as well as providing craft goodie bags for event attendees. He will also bring samples of recent projects for a show-and-tell. Attendees are encourage to bring their own projects to share and can ask Mike questions about techniques or roadblocks they have encountered. FREE.
Monday, March 17th
Irish Literature at Odd Mondays
Folio Books
3957 24th Street
7-9pm
With guidance from Odd Monday organizers Ramon Sender and Judith Levy-Sender come celebrate St. Paddy’s Day with Irish Literature read by local authors! We’ll raise a glass or pint as Noe neighbors read passages from their favorite Irish lit. A rollicking good time will be had by all!
Local authors read from Irish literature in the genre they write in:
- Novels: Scott Hutchins, author of A Working Theory of Love
- Nonfiction: Mary Jo Maconahay, Maya Roads
- Short Stories: Richard May, Ginger Snaps: Photos & Stories
- Poetry: Dan Richman, Farming in San Francisco
- Folktales: Michelle Cannon Diaz, Ben Not a Puppy
In addition, Wayne Goodman & Peggy Cling will read a scene from the 1963 Irish play The Year of the Hiker by John B. Keane
The readers’ books and the Irish books they read from available for sale and signing. Irish refreshments and homemade Irish soda bread will be available. Come celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with your neighbors. FREE.
Tuesday, March 18th
8:30-9:30am – Author Visit by Prudence Breitrose
Alvarado School
Prudence Breitrose, author of Mousenet (2011), Mousemobile (2013) and Mouse Mission (due out in 2015), grew up in the part of England where Winnie-the-Pooh once roamed. She now lives in the Bay Area, where she worked as a health-education writer until she had a dream that confused computer mice with the real thing!
Mousenet and its sequel Mousemobile tell how mice evolved into a species just as smart as humans, and are now using those smarts to slow down the rate of climate change. It all began when mice watched young geeks working in Silicon Valley. But using human computers was a pain. The mice desperately needed a computer their size, one they could use behind the walls. The Big Cheese, leader of the Mouse Nation, launched a search – and a clan in Cleveland, Ohio, reported the great news: an inventor and his ten-year-old niece had just made the world’s smallest computer. The rest is history!
This presentation for 3rd-5th grade students is sponsored by Books, Inc. bookstores.
3-5pm – Children’s Story and Olive Oil Tasting
Olive This Olive That
304 Vicksburg Street
Coratina written by Italian olive oil professional and writer, Orietta Gianjorio, is a story about a little lost olive girl from Italy on a journey of discovery.This beautifully illustrated storybook introduces children to olive varietals and stimulates their sensory reactions to olive oil aromas. Illustrator, Nathelie Fabri, will be share her original illustrations with the children.
7-9pm – A Tasty Book Swap
Olive This Olive That
304 Vicksburg Street
Find a lovely home for those books you’ve already read and find a fresh new book to take with you. While browsing titles, enjoy light refreshments and olive oil tastings. Test your olive oil IQ with a fun quiz and win a prize for the most correct answers. Books may be dropped off throughout the day and picked up throughout the week.
Wednesday, March 19th
LGBT Books Panel
Cliche Noe Gifts
4175 24th Street
7:30-9pm
Four LGBT authors read from their books and discuss the Queer creative process.
- Mark Abramson, For My Brothers memoir
- Tyler Cohen, Primahood comics on raising children
- Bud Gundy, The Averston Salt historical novel
- Dorian Katz, Safe Sex Bang: Buzz Bense Safe Sex Poster Collection
Wine and cheese reception, book sales and signing. FREE.
Thursday, March 20th
10:15-10:45am and 11:00-11:30am – Toddler Tales
Noe Valley/Sally Brunn Library
451 Jersey Street
The Community Room of the Noe Valley Library is the place to be for a busy, bubbly, bustling literary scene for the toddler set in Noe Valley! Come join children’s librarian, Catherine Starr, for stories, rhymes and movement especially designed for those 16 to 36 months old and the folks who take care of them.
7:30-9pm – New Noe Novels
Folio Books
3957 24th Street
Four Noe Valley authors read from novels just out!
- Michael Castleman, Killer Weed, an Ed Rosenberg mystery
- Kirstin Chen, Soy Sauce for Beginners, a foodie love story
- Rob Rosen, Queens of the Apocalypse, drag queens vs. zombies
- Bill Yenne, The Fire of Greed, a Bladen Cole western
Noe Valley authors reception, followed by readings, book sales and signing. All local writers and readers are welcome! FREE.
Friday, March 21st
3:30-5:30pm – Movie Time at the Library! – Akeelah and the Bee
Noe Valley/Sally Brunn Library
451 Jersey Street
If you want to be a writer – spelling counts! Bring your family and friends to the Community Room of the Noe Valley Library and find out if Akeelah can spell her way into the National Spelling Bee! Cookies donated by the Noe Valley Bakery. FREE.
What the critics are saying:
A young girl learns to believe in herself and value her intelligence in this critically-acclaimed, family-friendly drama. Akeelah Anderson is an 11-year-old being raised by her mother, Tanya who was left on her own after the death of her husband. While Akeelah is a very bright girl, she’s hardly a star student and seems afraid of acting like a bookworm around her friends and classmates. However, Akeelah’s teacher sees genuine potential in her student and encourages her to enter the school’s spelling bee, convinced Akeelah has the brains and the talent to win. Akeelah applies herself and emerges victorious in the local competition, but discovers the going gets tougher when she goes to a statewide bee, studying for the regionals under the aegis of strict English teacher Dr. Larabee, who consents to act as her coach. ~ Mark Deming for Fandango
7-9:30pm – Noe Valley Open Mic
Cliché Noe Gifts
4175 24th Street
Spoken word, your own songs. Here’s your chance for 5 minutes of fame! Sign up online now at OPEN MIC or at the party (by 7:30pm). Everyone is welcome to read, sing or cheer. FREE.
Saturday, March 22nd
Noe Valley Authors Festival
Alvarado School
625 Douglass Street
2-5pm
30+ local authors from Noe Valley and surrounding neighborhoods including Glen Park, Diamond Heights, Twin Peaks, The Castro, The Mission and Bernal Heights will present their books for sale and signing. Offerings range from children’s books to science fiction, serious political and policy discussions.
The Authors Festival intention is to focus spotlights on the considerable writing talent in Noe Valley and the contiguous neighborhoods. Our area is blessed with a multitude of published authors with a great number of books on all subjects, in all genres and all written from the imagination and experience of people right here in the ‘hood. The Authors Festival will give you the chance to meet these talented neighbors, peruse their books and take some home. At the Festival you can meet authors who are ready to say hello and sign their book and to answer your specific questions.
Support your local writers and artists! FREE admission! Refreshments available. Door prizes from local businesses awarded every 30 minutes. Must be present to win.
If you are an author and would like to get more information, please email wordweeknoevalley@gmail.com. Or click here for an online application –APPLICATION. The deadline to apply is March 20th.
There will be a small fee to participants to cover the costs of renting the hall.
Sunday, March 23rd
Paris in Noe, a Publication Party
Folio Books
3957 24th Street
7:30-9pm
Celebrate publication of Murder in Pigalle, the latest Aimee Leduc mystery by Noe Valley’s own New York Times best selling author Cara Black. Cara will read from her 14th novel about the Parisian detective and fierce fashionista and discuss her work with her editor, Juliet Grames, Associate Publisher, Soho Press. Book sales and signing will follow. French food, drink & music will be provided. FREE.
Saturday, March 15th – Sunday, March 23rd
Children’s Book Project Book Drive
- Cliché Noe, 4175 24th Street
- Small Frys, 4066 24th Street
- Folio Books, 3957 24th Street
- Umpqua Bank, 3939 24th Street
- DAVIDsTEA, 3870 24th Street
The Children’s Book Project, celebrating their 20th year giving free books to the community, was founded to help build literacy by providing free, new and gently used books to children in shelters, schools, daycare and community centers.
New and gently used children’s books for children of all ages – infants to teenagers – as well as other resources that aid literacy including curriculum materials, magazines, dictionaries, posters, CDs and DVDs are needed. Books intended for adults, textbooks, encyclopedias or old library discards cannot be use.
Please bring in “no-longer wanted” or outgrown books to one of the drop off locations. Remember books are gifts that can be opened again and again! Collection bins can be found up and down 24th Street.
Please note that Folio Books will give a 10% discount for any NEW books purchased for donation!