There at the Beginning: Boston Book Festival

The Boston Book Festival, the largest public literary event in New England, was founded in 2009 by Deborah Z. Porter to celebrate the power of words to stimulate, agitate, unite, delight and inspire. The Festival holds year-round events, many in Boston’s neighborhoods, culminating in an annual, free festival that promotes a culture of reading and ideas. The Boston Foundation was there with start-up funding in 2009. Since then, the Festival has launched a host of innovative initiatives to spark a connection to reading and books among all of our city’s residents. Every year hundreds of leading authors and 25,000 readers converge on Copley Square for panels and presentations, workshops, music, a street fair and more. The 2019 Festival will be held on October 18-20 and will feature 300 authors to be announced in the early fall.

The Boston Foundation has been There at the Beginning with critical early funding for more than 100 great ideas and new nonprofits.