Authors Announced For the Arkansas Literary Festival April 8-11

Arkansas Literary Festival announces authorsLike last year — and maybe even more so — there aren't really any big names headed to the seventh annual Arkansas Literary Festival, which'll is happening April 8-11 throughout the River Market area.

Still, some good looking authors and programs. After just a quick scan through, here are some that stood out to me:

*Nolan Richardson biographer Rus Bradburd

*Marjorie Rosen, author of “Boom Town: How Wal-Mart Transformed an All-American Town into an International Community,” who had readings cancelled in Bentonville and Rogers libraries last year. David Koon wrote about it then.

*The Oxford American Southern Food Issue panel, which includes New Orleans Times Picayune columnist Lolis Eric Elie and restaurant writer Brett Anderson along with Sam Eifling, who's writing about the nature of Arkansas food for the issue.

*Martha Hall Foose, author of the FANTASTIC cookbook "Screen Doors and Sweet Tea," and Katherine Whitworth, talking about food. More

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Annual ZORA! Festival draws thousands to Eatonville

EATONVILLE – Zora Neale Hurston died 50 years ago, but her spirit and writings continue to be paramount for this small African-American community north of downtown Orlando.

As she had done decades earlier, fans of the dominant Harlem Renaissance author strolled down Eatonville's main street on Saturday to absorb the rich culture of the country's first incorporated all-black town, which Hurston often described in her novels. Cultural and art enthusiasts visited the town to honor the author and other black artists and scholars during the annual Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts and Humanities – ZORA! Festival.

The event makes history real, said Sharahn Slack of Orlando. She played the abolitionist Harriett Tubman in a skit outside the Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church to encourage people, particularly youth, to pursue their dreams and celebrate their community – messages she says Hurston spread through her work.

"History is something to be celebrated rather than learned. When you celebrate history, it becomes personal," Slack, 16, said.

The three-day Outdoor Festival of the Arts, which wraps up today, is the conclusion of ZORA! Festival. It draws thousands of visitors from all over the U.S. and overseas each year. Event organizers estimate 250,000 people will attend this year's event. http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/os-zora-street-festival-20100130,0,248500.story

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