Jack Reacher, a billion dollar Literary Brand is coming to Amelia Island
Fernandina Beach, FL – The strongest brand in publishing (according to Forbes Magazine in March 2014) is coming to Amelia Island in February for the 17th Annual Amelia Island Book Festival. The Jack Reacher series by Lee Child is a $1 billion dollar brand published in 47 languages and 101 territories. With well over 100 million books sold, the series has commanded over a billion dollars in global sales.
Jack Reacher is the creation of British author Lee Child (now a New Yorker). Child heads up a blockbuster line-up of New York Times and international bestselling authors coming to the festival, including Karin Slaughter, Adriana Trigiani, Jennifer Armentrout, Sherri Rinker and Jacques Pépin. Steve Berry returns as Honorary Chairman.
The 17th Annual, 3-day long festival continues the tradition of bringing amazing authors to the community in support of its mission of Connecting students, authors and books for lifelong learning. All The ticketed events support the Festival’s award-winning Authors in Schools Literacy Program. The free activities for students and the community ensure there is something for everyone during this annual literary extravaganza.
The Festival’s signature event, the AUTHOR FACE-OFF DINNER GALA, is an annual event that helps buy books for students. You don’t want to miss this unique opportunity to mix, mingle up close and personal with the creator of Jack Reacher and witness our lineup of literary giants as they “face-off” with each other on their writing craft! The sparring panel includes NYT bestselling authors Lee Child, Jennifer Armentrout, Karin Slaughter and Sherry Rinker, led by chief instigator, Steve Berry. The “face-off” always delivers surprising and witty insights from our headliners in a multi-genre blockbuster panel.
This very special evening is set for Friday, Feb. 16, 2018 from 6 – 10 pm at the Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort. The evening includes an open bar cocktail reception with the authors, a gourmet sit-down dinner (wine included), a limited live auction, where the winning bidder can live on forever in a Jack Reacher novel. This special prize is a generous donation by author Lee Child. Tickets are $175 per person. purchase tickets at www.ameliaislandbookfestival.org
See the complete festival program at www.ameliaislandbookfestival.org for details on all events and activities. Proceeds from all ticketed festival events benefit the Authors in Schools Literacy Program for students of Nassau County.
Authors in Schools… A book for every student
The AIBF is home to the award-winning Authors in Schools (AIS) Literacy Program. With the support of sponsors, members, donors and fundraising events, the AIBF rolls out this annual program, bringing authors into every public school in Nassau County and buying books for each student of the author they meet. This February, the Festival will purchase and gift more than 11,000 students with a book of the noted author they meet, in turn inspiring young people to achieve their goals.
“Authors in Schools has grown in the past few years especially, encouraging area students to read and write,” said Dr. John Ruis, AIBF President and former Nassau County Schools Superintendent. “Being exposed to this level of quality authors, spending time with them – hearing how they develop ideas and get inspired – and taking home the book of the author they met…it’s an invaluable opportunity to help our students develop important literary skills for their future.”
AIBF annually solicits applications and books from prospective author presenters. This year, close to 80 books from more than 70 authors were submitted for consideration for the AIS program. The books are reviewed by the AIBF Board, then scrutinized by the school media specialists, reading coaches and other educators to determine age appropriateness and applicability to the curriculum requirements. School representatives make the final decisions on all books.
“The Authors in Schools Literacy Program is a perfect example of community partnerships at their best,” Dr. Ruis said.
Donna Martin, School Board chair, added, “The Authors in Schools program is a tremendous gift to our students.” This year’s Authors in Schools Day is set for Fri., Feb. 16, 2018.
