On Monday, March 9th, the Library of Congress announced the date and location for the 2015 National Book Festival – Saturday, September 5, 2015, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. The Junior League of Washington (JLW) is proud once again to serve as the Library of Congress’s primary partner for volunteer support, a role the League has played since 2003.

The theme of this year’s Book Festival is “I Cannot Live Without Books,” and we hope this message serves as both an inspiration and a reminder to every JLW member. Each year, as the Junior League of Washington focuses our resources and time on the complex issues of literacy in our nation’s capital, we experience firsthand just how true that statement is – literacy not only enriches lives, but it is integral to leading successful lives. Our involvement in the National Book Festival, which supports the joy of lifetime reading, truly underscores our commitment to promoting literacy in and around Washington, DC.

The JLW has a long history with the National Book Festival – spanning 13 years, with nearly 5,000 volunteers providing more than 23,000 volunteer hours. Last year, as the festival moved to the Washington Convention Center, we continued to be the chief provider of volunteer support for the festival – and we want to thank everyone who helped make the event so successful in its new home. Moving forward, the JLW sees numerous opportunities to grow our involvement, improve on last year, and continue to be a vibrant presence at the National Book Festival.

This is a big year for the National Book Festival, which is celebrating its 15^th year since its founding, as well as the 200^thyear since the Library of Congress acquired Thomas Jefferson’s personal library – which helped the Library become the largest library in the world.

We hope you join the Junior League of Washington and the Library of Congress to commemorate these anniversaries and to celebrate the joy of reading at the National Book Festival in 2015. We look forward to working with you to make the book festival a success.