Brooklyn Book Festival Smashing Success, Again

The weather was great and literally thousands of book lovers milled about Borough Hall and other nearby venues for the second annual Brooklyn Book Festival. A large list of world-famous authors -- Jonathan Lethem, Jonathan Safran Foer, Phillip Lopate, Pete Hamill, Bernice McFadden, Dave Eggers, Paula Fox, Ken Siegelman, and many more -- gave readings and spoke on panels in various Borough Hall locations. Brooklyn literary legend Paul Auster was the guest of honor at the Book Festival Gala VIP event Saturday night.

The crowd was ultra enthusiastic, people lined up for autographs, and there was a lot going on. BP Marty Markowitz gave talks and TV interviews, somebody from Develop Don't Destroy held up a sign showing how Atlantic Yards would forever dwarf everything else in Brooklyn, Japanese people reveled in the Target dog (Bullseye), crowds pushed good-naturedly from one table to the next, and serious literary discussions were breaking out right and left.

Last-minute attendees literally ran to get tickets for various speakers from the festival info booth -- and everything was FREE! Great day!

Photos by MK Metz