November is National Family Literacy month, and the opportunity to get up close and personal with several books, as well as some best-selling authors, is quickly approaching with the Peak City Book Festival.

The first book festival the Triangle has seen since 2009, the Peak City Book Festival will be held Saturday, Nov. 9 at The Halle Cultural Arts Center in Apex.

“As a publisher, I spend a large portion of my budget traveling to festivals outside of our area to reach audiences and share our books,” said Shiloh Burnam, owner of Apex business Peak City Publishing. “I decided it was time to bring those dollars to Apex, where the town actively supports small businesses, education and literacy.”

The event will last from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and feature a range of activities bookworms and music lovers of any age can enjoy.

“Upstairs, we are featuring music from Ragged Company, a Smithfield-based band, and Jessica Rae Jones of Apex,” said Burnam. “Downstairs, we will have story time with the authors for the little ones, a street art workshop, writing workshops for adult novelists, and a creative writing workshop for aspiring middle and high school writers.”

Eighteen accomplished authors will be in attendance including Tamara Ward, author of the best-selling series “Jonie Water’s Mystery” and Ann Eisenstein, author of the best-seller “Hiding Carly, A Sean Gray Junior Special Agent Mystery,” who will both participate in writing workshops. 

Other festivities to expect include a scavenger hunt, “pictures with a favorite princess” at 1 and 4 p.m., and coffee, ice cream and snack bags for sale.

Regarding the significance of the festival, Burnam said, “Our theme this year is to ‘Bring paper back to books.’ We want to share the beauty of the written word. Peak City Publishing is founded on three key principles: to engage, entertain and educate. Attendees can expect to experience all three at the Peak City Book Festival.”