COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

NOGSBA has been operating the Book Tent at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival since 1985. Please check out the 2008 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival for more information on the festival itself.

The tent is staffed by volunteers from the "book" community, including booksellers, librarians, authors, and booklovers. Of course, books covering the food, music, and culture of New Orleans are always the bestsellers.

NOGSBA also holds book signings in conjunction with the Book Tent. These book signings are, in turn, covered on the "Literary Page" of The Times-Picayune, which offers further exposure to these authors, as well as providing additional publicity for Jazz Fest. Many times, authors featured at signings are in the "limelight," which is an additional draw to crowds.

Childrens' Book Bank

Funds from the sale of books at the Book Tent are used to buy books for our Childrens' Book Bank, which provides books to needy children who would not otherwise have access to books of their own. The Childrens' Book Bank provides books through STAIR (Start the Adventure in Reading), For the Children, Just the Right Attitude, and Girls and Boys Town of Louisiana, among others.

NOGSBA also collects books from Ingram Wholesalers, Forest Sales, and member bookstores, as well as from exhibitors at the annual Mid-South Booksellers Trade Show, who agree to donate books to the Book Bank. NOGSBA has provided thousands of books to the Childrens' Book Bank for distribution to needy children.

Literacy Programs

NOGSBA members feel quite strongly the important of reading and literacy. Members cooperate with various literacy programs operating in the community by providing volunteers and mailing lists in support of various literacy activities. Among these group is Operation Mainstream, a program of the Y.M.C.A.

NOGSBA hopes to further expands its involvement in literacy efforts by coordinating members to train as tutors, and become teachers and mentors to those of our community who are unable to read, or read below literacy levels. This program can be further expanded to reach other areas and communities.

It is the members of NOGSBA with their passion for books and all things literary who have put New Orleans back in touch with its literary heritage and attracted not only writers, but also film producers, actors, and artists from around the country, many of whom have settled in New Orleans, bringing their own vast talents to enhance our community, making it a key literary and growing entertainment center in the United States.

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