Kensington to celebrate authors, books and community

Day of the Book event not only celebrates the stories, but two literary greats as well

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

These days Kensington resident Allan Savage doesn’t get to practice chess as often as he’d like.

But chances are he’ll still beat you if you play him.

If you don’t believe it, take your chances on Sunday against the international chess master and two-time state chess champion as he plays six people at once during Kensington’s Day of the Book activities.

‘‘Basically, in a normal case I’m playing 20 or 30 moves at once. I move from one board on to the next,” said Savage, author of several chess-oriented books. ‘‘You have to go pretty fast and [players] make their move as I [go] from board to board.”

Savage, 54, is among close to 100 authors and artists who will participate in the Day of the Book event.

Booksellers Elisenda Sola-Hopper of Kensington Row Bookshop and Beth Youkel of Osiris Books, are organizing the event for the second year to promote area authors and artists.

‘‘Last year we didn’t have too much time to organize everything. We didn’t have the time or the means, but this year we’ve gotten the word out,” Sola-Hopper said. ‘‘The idea is that it will become an annual event, that it will evolve into a celebration of the richness and the arts of Kensington.”

Last year 11 artists participated. This year, Sola-Hopper said, the Day of the Book has attracted almost 10 times that many.

The daylong event will feature live music, open mic readings, crafts and storytelling and tables set up along the street by artists and authors promoting their work.

Events will take place on Howard Avenue, down to Flinn Park on Kensington Parkway.

If you go What: The Day of the Book, a celebration of artists, authors and musicians, will feature artwork, crafts, books, storytelling and music. When: Noon to 5 p.m. Sunday along Howard Avenue Additional Information: The event is free and open to the public. Parking will be available on Howard and Metropolitan avenues, and also at the Kensington Park Library, 4201 Knowles Ave. A shuttle will be at the library to take visitors to and from the main events. For information, including a list of events, directions and a map of parking and a shuttle schedule, go to www.dayofthebook.com or call organizers Elisenda Sola-Hopper at 301-949-9416, or Beth Youkel at 301-530-7399

It is based on a similar event that takes place annually in Catalonia, Spain, to celebrate books and commemorate two literary greats — William Shakespeare and Miguel Cervantes — who both died on April 23, Sola-Hopper said.

Because the day also coincides with St. George’s Day, a holiday celebrated in parts of Europe where it is tradition to give out a book and a rose on April 23, some vendors will be handing out roses on Sunday as well, she said.

‘‘I think it’s something that brings a lot of different elements together in Kensington,” Youkel said about her hopes for the festival.

The day not only celebrates books and the artists who created them, but gives people in the community a chance to learn about their neighbors. There is a story behind every author.

Savage got his start in chess after his fifth-grade teacher, Miss Woolsey, bought him a miniature chess set and some starter books to take his mind off an illness.

‘‘I was 10 years old and I was laying up in the hospital...I had a tumor,” Savage said. ‘‘She knew I was good at math. I learned the game within a year or two of learning the moves. I just started reading the chess books. That’s basically all I was doing. I read dozens of dozens of chess books.”

While this is the second year Savage has participated, Sola-Hopper attributes the larger number of participants this year to having had more time to organize the festival and get the word out.

Sola-Hopper and other Day of the Book supporters distributed flyers and put information about the event out on listservs and Web sites, she said.

Which is how Savage first heard about the event.

‘‘It mentioned different things about books and performances,” said Savage, who came across a Web site about the festival. ‘‘It made sense to me. I am a Kensington author. I enjoy chess. I get to do all of my favorite things all in one day and that’s why it will be enjoyable to me.”

This year, Sola-Hopper and Youkel are hoping the event will be more enjoyable for everyone. They want to get visitors involved and have included more performance activities like Savage’s interactive chess game.

‘‘It’s a celebration of the book, but the book is art,” Sola-Hopper said. ‘‘A book is not just somebody writing down words, it’s art, it’s knowledge, it’s ideas.”