Boise State Albertsons Library brought Idaho literature to the world last month at the National Book Festival in Washington DC.
Library archivist Gwyn Hervochon, director of the Idaho Center for the Book, was there on Saturday, August 24, tabling at the Idaho booth along with 55 other U.S. states and territories at the Washington Convention Center. While she interacted with thousands of Festival attendees, famous authors like Viet Than Nguyen and Rebecca Yarros hosted talks about their recently published and critically acclaimed works.
Hervochon brought two pieces of literature to the festival’s bookstore – historical fiction novel “Four Treasures of the Sky” by Jenny Tinghui Zhang for older audiences, and graphic novel “It’s Her Story: Sacajawea” by Randy’L Teton and Aly McKnight for children.
Each book flew off the shelves. “We completely sold out of the Idaho books,” Hervochon said.
The two books were selected through Idaho Library Association nominations, and personally approved by the Idaho Center for the Book. Each book follows a theme of “Great Reads from Great Places,” representing Idaho’s literary heritage.
Hervochon said she values sharing Idaho’s local stories on a national scale. “It feels really important to show up and be in that space with colleagues and readers and book lovers throughout the country, and to support stories by and about Idahoans along with everybody else,” she said.
The Idaho Center for the Book’s next collaboration will bring Randy’L Teton, the author of “It’s Her Story: Sacajawea,” to the Idaho State Museum on November 9. Both Teton’s and Zhang’s books are available to check out from the Albertsons Library’s physical collection.