Dunwoody is about to spend three weeks swapping stories, starting with one written by a mother of eight who has spent the last fifteen years as a Chabad emissary in the city. The Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta is marking the 35th edition of its Book Festival with 22 days of author events running Nov. 1 through Nov. 22, and the lineup stretches from a local memoirist to a former first lady and a Grammy-winning entertainer.
The festival celebrates its 35th year with a run that organizers describe as 22 days of author events in Dunwoody, according to ajc.com. Marquee names include former first lady Jill Biden, who is scheduled to discuss her book “View from the East Wing,” and singer Harry Connick Jr., who will promote “Babe: Elaboratio,” his book about his mother, per the same report from ajc.com. As Atlanta News First notes, the festival features bestselling authors, celebrity guests and meaningful conversations while also spotlighting local voices.
A Local Author Opens the Festival
The festival opens with Atlanta author Dena Schusterman, whose memoir “Stories Carry” explores her upbringing in a Hasidic Jewish community alongside her life today as a mother of eight and emissary in Atlanta, per Atlanta News First. Schusterman is described as an Atlanta-based writer, educator and community leader, according to the Marcus JCC of Atlanta's event page, and the center frames her book as a personal memoir about faith, belonging and the inherited stories that shape a life.
Schusterman has spent her adult years as a Chabad shlucha in Atlanta alongside her husband, Eliyahu, the Jewish Book Council notes. The memoir reportedly structures its material in alternating timelines, one tracing her childhood in California and New Mexico and the other covering her last fifteen years in Atlanta, the site adds. The Atlanta Jewish Times has described the book as built around more than 30 stories and anecdotes drawn from family history and her own life.
When and Where to Catch the Opening Event
Schusterman is scheduled to appear in conversation with author Melissa Faye Greene at 1:30 p.m. on Nov. 1, with tickets priced at $21.50, per ajc.com. Copies of her memoir will be available for purchase the day of the event from partner bookseller A Cappella Books, the Marcus JCC of Atlanta's program page states. All festival events, including the opening conversation, take place at the MJCCA at 5342 Tilly Mill Road in Dunwoody, according to the Atlanta Jewish Times.
A Festival Built on Genre and Generosity
Beyond the headline conversations, the festival folds in Q&As, musical performances and hands-on workshops alongside the usual author talks, per ajc.com's coverage of the 2026 lineup. The center bills its annual gathering as featuring dozens of renowned authors each November, per its own program page, with a diverse roster of experts, celebrities and writers discussing novels, cookbooks, memoirs and investigative journalism this year, according to ajc.com.
Organizers are also folding in a charitable component, collecting contributions for a toy drive benefiting Amy's Holiday Party, the outlet reports. With a mother of eight opening the festivities before a former first lady and a crooner-turned-author take their own turns on stage, the 35th edition looks to stretch the festival's reach from intimate, local storytelling to national-name draws across its three-week run.
