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Photo by Michelle Schenker for My Winston-Salem, © Cover Story Media, Inc. 2019.
What began as an idea for a book festival in 2000 has grown into a prosperous community resource that is now a non-profit, independent bookstore in Winston-Salem that brings people of all ages together with books and authors that educate, inspire, challenge, and entertain. Their 2025 Annual Festival of Books & Authors will take place September 25-28, with the free street festival on Saturday, September 27.
Bookmarks, located at 634 W 4th Street #110 in Winston-Salem, is committed to the connection and belonging of every person through the power of books. They accomplish this through many means and with various programs focused on the community’s access to books. The bookstore is a place where people can find quality, curated books for all ages. All books have been carefully selected to reflect the Winston-Salem community and Bookmarks’ core values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.
Bookmarks’ Beginnings
Bookmarks began with an idea by the Junior League in 2000 to hold a book festival to promote literacy. The first Bookmarks Festival was held in Old Salem in 2004, with key authors Maya Angelou and Michael Chabon presenting. The festival subsequently moved to Bethabara Park, Trade Street, and its current location around the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts.
In 2006, Bookmarks left the Junior League and became an entirely volunteer-run, 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization until 2010, when the board hired an Executive Director. Gradually, employees were added, office space was obtained, and outreach and year-round programming began. The festivals continued, and demand for services grew. In 2015, discussions began about the possibility of an independent bookstore. At the 2016 Festival, the plan was unveiled. John Grisham was the Keynote Speaker and promised to return once the bookstore opened. There was community support, and through grants and corporate and individual donations, the Bookmarks store had its Grand Opening on July 8, 2017. John Grisham returned to Bookmarks the following week for his first bookstore tour in more than 25 years.
Outreach And Programs
Photo by Michelle Schenker for My Winston-Salem, © Cover Story Media, Inc. 2022.
Bookmarks Festival – September 25-28, 2025
The Annual Festival of Books & Authors is the largest outreach program that Bookmarks facilitates each year. It is also the largest annual book festival held in the Carolinas. The festival features acclaimed authors, keynotes, book signings, panels, authors sent to schools, a children’s area with activities, and more. Notable authors that attended in 2024 were T.J. Klune (The House In The Cerulean Sea), Stacey Abrams (While Justice Sleeps), Emily Griffin (The Summer Pact), Amalie Howard (The Worst Duke In London), Stacy McAnulty (Forever Twelve), Sabaa Tahir (An Ember In The Ashes), and James Rollins (Sigma Force Series).
This year marks the 20th Anniversary of the Annual Festival of Books & Authors and is set to take place September 25-28, 2025. The celebration centers around a free street festival on Saturday, September 27 in downtown Winston-Salem, featuring a day of books, activities, food trucks, vendors, and fun for all ages. The Opening Keynote Speaker for this years festival will be Hoda Kotb, award-winning journalist, four-time Emmy winner, and beloved former co-host of NBC’s “TODAY.” Kotb will kickoff the festival on Thursday, September 25, at 7:30pm in RJ Reynolds Auditorium, 301 N Hawthorne Road, Winston-Salem. Ticket information will be announced soon at bookmarksnc.org/HodaKotb. Closing out the festival, September 28 at 3pm will be a keynote conversation from New York Times bestselling authors Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro at Reynolds Auditorium. In their newest book, The Court of the Dead, the authors collaborate again on a new adventure in which Nico di Angelo teams up with his half-sister Hazel Levesque to protect . . . monsters. For more information about the festival including volunteer opportunities, tickets, and festival details visit Bookmark’s Festival Page.
Bookmarks Launches Every Shelf, Every Student
In response to the ongoing budget shortfall affecting Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools (WS/FCS), Bookmarks is launching a new campaign to rally the community around students and teachers. Through the initiative, titled “Every Shelf, Every Student,” each public school in the district will have a curated list of urgently needed books available for purchase at Bookmarks—empowering individuals, families, and businesses to make a direct and lasting impact on student literacy. The entire community can support students by donating a book to the school libraries. Books are offered at the lowest possible price with no profit made. Donors can choose specific books or make a monetary contribution, which will be used for the schools with the greatest needs. Visit this site, Bookmarks, to view the schools’ wish lists and make a donation.
Authors In Schools
Bookmarks began sending authors to schools in 2004. Working with local and area authors and illustrators, this grew into a year-round project in 2011. They continue to bring authors and illustrators to classrooms and community groups in the Piedmont Triad.
Book With Purpose
Book With Purpose is a summer reading initiative designed to encourage the community to engage and unite by reading about the same topic. The subjects are hoped to inspire, challenge, and educate. Past themes have included mental health, antiracism, and immigration. This year’s topic was voting rights.
The Book Build
The Book Build was a past project Bookmarks engaged in to update the library collections of schools in Forsyth County. A list of books was developed that included a balance of topics, cultural representation, and points of view. Each of the 80 WSFC schools received 315 books, totaling $5000 of books per school.
Bookmarks Passport Club
Bookmarks Passport Club celebrates literature from all parts of the globe. Join the reading around the world challenge! Stop by Bookmarks to purchase a passport ($10). As you read books from each country, you will fill out what you read under the corresponding country and bring your passport into Bookmarks to be stamped. For every 3 stamps, you get a prize. Free Digital Passports are also available. You can read more about the Passport Club on this Bookmarks Website.
Collaborative Community Work
Bookmarks regularly collaborates with businesses, arts organizations, and non-profits in many ways, such as helping find an author, selling books, and providing volunteers. They also plan and collaborate on community events with partner organizations that are intended to generate conversations that educate, inspire, challenge, and entertain.
Other Events At Bookmarks
Bookmarks is a community space where people can come together to share their love of reading. See Bookmarks Calendar for events, including:
- Book Clubs
- Book Launches
- Book Talks
- Workshops
- Story Hours
- Book Trivia
More Information About Bookmarks
Bookmarks is located at 634 W 4th Street, Winston-Salem #110. Its hours of operation are Monday through Saturday, 10am to 9pm, and Sunday, 12pm to 6pm. Visit Bookmarks’ Website for a calendar of events, an opportunity to sign up for their newsletter, more information about book clubs, book recommendations, and book ordering.
More Opportunities To Educate, Inspire, And Entertain
Winston-Salem offers numerous ways to spend the day learning and being inspired creatively. We are, after all, the City of Arts and Innovations! See our articles about museums in the city or area art galleries and enjoy an afternoon browsing through one of these interesting places.
Have you been to the Bookmarks Book Festival? Tell us about it in the comments.
