Newly-minted U.S. Poet Laureate and Decatur resident Natasha Trethewey will give the keynote address at the 2012 Decatur Book Festival, which will be held over Labor Day weekend, Aug. 31 to Sept. 2.

rethewey will deliver the keynote address on Friday, Aug. 31, 8 p.m. at the Schwartz Center at Emory University and also launch her newest collection of poems, Thrall.

Following the keynote at Emory on Friday, the festival will kick off Saturday, Sept. 1, with a children’s parade on the Decatur Square. The remainder of the events in downtown Decatur will continue throughout the day Saturday and Sunday afternoon, Sept. 2, with a wide variety of authors and events for all ages and interests.

DBF will feature lectures and signings from 300 national and local authors, including award-winners and bestsellers across a wide spectrum of subjects, topics, and genres. A few of the internationally known authors to be featured include Michael Connelly, Kathy Reichs, Tess Gerritsen, Erin Morgenstern, Meg Cabot, Isabel Wilkerson, Julie Otsuka, and John T. Edge.

For more information, visit www.decaturbookfestival.com.

Collin Kelley

Collin Kelley has been the editor of Atlanta Intown for two decades and has been a journalist and freelance writer for 35 years. He’s also an award-winning poet and novelist.