The 16th annual Gaithersburg Book Festival will take place on Saturday, May 17, 2025, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Bohrer Park in Gaithersburg. The event is free to attend, and free parking options are available but limited, so attendees are encouraged to use the recommended free shuttle service running continuously from 9:15 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. between the Montgomery County Fairgrounds (501 Perry Parkway) and the Shady Grove Metro Station (355 side).
The Gaithersburg Book Festival is a free annual celebration of great books and great writing that has made its mark as one of the nation’s top literary events. This year’s Festival – celebrating its 16th year and taking place May 17 – will feature more than 130 best-selling and award-winning authors who will participate in talks and panel discussions. Authors include:
Fiction
Louis Bayard
Jeanine Cummins
Mary Robinette Kowal
John Scalzi
Non-Fiction
David Aldridge
Rick Atkinson
Dave Barry
Evan Friss
Joe Posnanski
Judith Viorst
Alan Weisman
Mystery/Thriller/Fantasy
P. Djeli Clark
Jeffery Deaver
David Ellis
Sarah Pekkanen
Poetry
John Amen (2024 Susan Laughter Myers Fellowship)
Nancy Naomi Carlson (Poet Laureate of Kensington Day of the Book Festival)Holly Karapetkova (2024 Barry Spacks Poetry Prize Winner)
Steven Leyva (Cave Canem fellow)
Amuchechukwu Nwafor (2024 DC Poet Project Winner)
Children’s Picture Books
Brian Lies (Caldecott Honor Winner)
Steve Light
Laura Numeroff
Linda Sue Park (Newbery Award Winner)
Bob Shea
Children’s Graphic Novels
Jacqueline Davies
Kami Garcia
John Patrick Green
Joanna Ho (JOHO)
Hena Khan
Middle Grade
Charles Bolden, Jr.
Vera Brosgol (Caldecott Honor Winner)
Erin Entrada Kelly (two Newbery Medals)
Grace Lin
Katherine Marsh (National Book Award Finalist)
Rachel Renee Russell and Nikki Russell
Young Adult
Tracey Baptiste
Cinda Williams Chima
Laura Elliott (Scott O’Dell award winner for Historical Fiction)
Sharon Flake (Coretta Scott King Award winner)
Ibi Zoboi (Coretta Scott King Award winner)
The Festival also includes interactive writing workshops, a Children’s Village, book sales, author signings and more. Admission and shuttles from Shady Grove Metro and Montgomery County Fairgrounds are FREE.
The Gaithersburg Book Festival’s official bookseller is Politics and Prose Bookstore. The event is The Gaithersburg Book Festival is sponsored by The Carnegie at Washingtonian Center, DoubleTree by Hilton Washington DC North Gaithersburg, Montgomery County Public Libraries, Montgomery County Public Schools, Chatter on Books, RIO Washingtonian Center, Washington Independent Review of Books, C-SPAN Book TV, Maryland State Arts Council and Montgomery Community Media.