Whether you’re an aspiring author, avid illustrator, or thoughtful gift-giver, it’s hard to beat handmade books. This introduction to coptic stitch binding includes a travel-sized toolkit (to keep!) so that you can bind books wherever there’s paper. Open to youth in grades 5-12. Registration required and space is limited. *Parent or caregiver participation is required […]

Sometimes, laughter really is the best medicine. This is what Mary Catherine Starr learned back in 2020 when she started making comics about motherhood and sharing them to Instagram. Five years later, she published her first book, a comic memoir all about her marriage and her journey through the early years of parenting. In this […]

Catch a glimpse of the richness and variety of contemporary South Asian women’s poetry and see new connections between women’s experiences in the U.S and the wider world. Co-editors Drs. Lopamudra Basu and Feroza Jussawalla will briefly introduce the Sing, Slivered Tongue anthology of poetry, touching on their goals in curating the poetry of contemporary […]

Poems and conversation with current Wisconsin Poet Laureate, Brenda Cárdenas, moderated by Max Garland.

Marcie Rendon, a celebrated member of the White Earth Nation and award‑winning playwright and poet, will delve into the creation of her breakout character, Cash Blackbear—a tough, intuitive young Ojibwe woman whose roots in rural 1970s Minnesota have resonated deeply with Midwestern readers. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of Rendon’s process for crafting authentic Native […]

From Iwo Jima to Vietnam, Dickey Chapelle reported from the front lines of the world’s most consequential struggles for freedom, fearlessly pursuing the truth no matter how deeply buried. Unlike many of her peers who blindly believed the government’s line, Dickey insisted on witnessing world events with her own eyes even if that meant marching […]

Harjani will share her deeply personal journey as a caregiver—a path that ultimately led to the creation of her powerful book, Postcards from Within: Random Ramblings of an Ordinary Human. Reflecting on the emotional, practical, and spiritual lessons learned through caregiving, Harjani will reveal how the experience shaped her perspective and her writing. Through stories […]

Liz Pelly is the author of Mood Machine, a critical investigation into the origins of Spotify and the impacts of streaming on music and culture. Drawing on over 100 interviews with musicians and industry insiders, Pelly’s book takes readers to the inner workings of today’s highly consolidated record business, showing what has changed as music […]

Please join book festival volunteers and supporters to celebrate the end of our 26th Chippewa Valley Book Festival. We will be gathering in the venue space at Leona’s Pizzeria in downtown Eau Claire. Pizza and beverages will be available for purchase, but camaraderie will be included free of charge. No registration is required. Doors open […]

The Bluff Country Tale Spinners slither back onto the Pump House stage with more Tales of the Creepy and Scary. Stories of mysterious figures, unfortunate events, and creaking floorboards will raise the hair on the back of your neck. It may be best to bring a friend to hold your hand and keep watch for […]

Bestselling, award-winning novelist, LEIF ENGER, a story-teller “of great humanity and huge heart” (Minneapolis Star Tribune), will discuss his most recent novel, I Cheerfully Refuse. Set in a not-too-distant America roiled by climate change and societal collapse, I Cheerfully Refuse is the tale of a bereaved and pursued musician, the affable Rainy, who sets sail […]

Join us for story time with V.T. Bidania. She will share stories from her Astrid and Apollo series, a chapter book starring eight-year-old Hmong American twins Astrid and Apollo Lee. Refreshments will be served. V.T. Bidania is the author of the Astrid and Apollo series and the forthcoming A Year Without a Home. The latter […]