The June 11 announcement of the first slate of authors inked for 2026 Charleston Literary Festival is a stone-cold, spine-tingler of bold-faced, bookish names.
The 10th anniversary of the 10-day festival takes place Nov. 6 to Nov. 15 at the Dock Street Theatre. A slew of today’s great thinkers and writers — including Pulitzer Prize winners, debut novelists, Nobel Prize finalists, a pioneering philosopher, a celebrated chef and New York Times bestselling authors — will pull up an armchair for unscripted conversations and book signings that will make the local cultural scene sparkle.
“This is the most extraordinary lineup we have ever assembled — and it is only the beginning,” Sarah Moriarty, executive director of Charleston Literary Festival, said in a statement.
The festival’s first reveal also provides readers with ample time to ready themselves for optimal engagement with today’s most sought-after scribes.
Going big, going deep
This year, as always, readers can go deep into the cerebral with today’s most thought-provoking authors.
They can delve into history with David Armitage, the Harvard University professor of history and author of The Declaration of Independence, a landmark reexamination timed to America’s 250th anniversary. They can sharpen their financial acumen with Liaquat Ahamed, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Lords of Finance, whose new book, 1873, probes the first global financial crisis. And they can mine chasms of tragedy and friendship with Tayari Jones by way of her new novel Kin.
But those who prefer to wade into the weighty later as thoughts turn to fall, there is plenty of fare that is at once transporting and transcendent to square with summer idylls. Here’s a list to get you up and reading.
Catch the summer buzz
If you haven’t read The Correspondent, the internationally bestselling 2025 debut by author Virginia Evans, now is the perfect time to crack the binding. Her tale told through letters and emails captured hearts and awards, eventually landing on the bestseller list. At the festival, Evans will no doubt share her hard-won road to literary glory.
Take a June Joyride
Devotees of Susan Orlean, acclaimed staff writer at The New Yorker, have long reveled in her singular forays into that elusive liminal space between morality and the lack thereof. To wit: The feature-turned-nonfiction book-turned film The Orchid Thief. Her writing is at once grist for the intellectual mill and a riveting rollick of a read. At the festival, Orleans will take us on the recent joyride that is Joyride, her 2025 memoir celebrating curiosity and delight.
Immerse yourself in young love
With its partly Southern setting and abundant literary references, Lily King’s Heart the Lover has enthralled a range of readers since its 2025 debut, absorbed by its tender and accessible exploration of desire, loss and first love. If you haven’t found your way to this popular novel yet, King’s appearance at the festival is reason enough.
Hang in the Hamptons
The talk of the town — and by that we mean New York City and its splashy outpost of The Hamptons — is Belle Burden, author of Strangers. It recounts her lavishly appointed 20-year marriage, Hamptons home and all, that comes utterly undone. Sounds like just the ticket for trophy wife wannabes and spare-me’s alike.
Basking in privilege
If Strangers whet your appetite for the other half, double-up with a work by Curtis Sittenfeld, the New York Times bestselling author of Prep, Show Don’t Tell, Eligible and Romantic Comedy. Her collections of short stories are mouth-watering, portion-controlled tastes of the rarefied life, each perfect for a poolside interlude.
Dip into the backlist
October 6 is the publication date for Partita, the latest from the great Barbara Kingsolver, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Demon Copperhead, in a conversation on her work.
Of course, those seeking probing titles can also ramp up immediately with fare like Rebecca Goldstein’s The Mattering Instinct that grapples with humanity’s fundamental need for meaning, or the works of Francis Fukuyama, the Stanford professor and author of End of History and the Last Man and The Origins of Political Order.
For tickets and more information, visit charlestonliteraryfestival.com. Additional author announcements will follow in the coming months.
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