Warm Up with the Holiday Reads: A prelude to the 2026 Lexington Book Festival
As winter settles in and homes fill with the glow of twinkling lights and steaming mugs of cocoa, there’s no better companion than a good book. This holiday season, readers are invited to discover stories that comfort, challenge, and inspire—straight from the voices shaping the 2026 Lexington Book Festival.
Lexington
Book
Festival
Save the Date:
March 21, 2026
The upcoming festival will once again celebrate the power of storytelling across genres and generations, and this year’s featured authors offer something for every reader. Dusti Bowling brings heartfelt children’s and middle-grade stories that explore big emotions with honesty and hope, while Jaki Shelton Green, North Carolina’s former Poet Laureate, delivers poetry rooted in place, identity, and resilience. Robert Gwaltney offers literary fiction grounded in Southern landscapes and complex human relationships, and Lisa Graff continues to delight young readers with stories full of curiosity, empathy, and joy. Scott Blackburn’s work often explores the quiet tensions of everyday life, Henry Wise crafts richly imagined fiction that lingers long after the final page, Polly Stewart weaves sharp insight and emotional depth into her storytelling, and Dawn Marion Hudgins blends lyrical language with powerful reflections on family, history, and belonging.
From enchanting stories for young readers to soul-stirring poetry and unforgettable fiction for adults, these books are perfect for curling up by the fire or placing thoughtfully under the tree. Titles from these featured authors—and many more—can be found at Pig City Books, the official bookstore of the Lexington Book Festival. Shopping local not only supports independent bookselling, but also strengthens the literary community that makes this festival possible.
As anticipation builds for the 2026 Lexington Book Festival, Davidson Local is proud to serve as a sponsor of this celebration of literature and community. We invite all forms of media to join us in covering the festival and the stories that bring readers together—this season and beyond.
