What started in 2024 as an event that ran from Friday afternoon through Saturday, with a Sunday authors' workshop, has grown into a cultural gathering in Springfield, and this year it's moving into a brand-new downtown home. The third Springfield Latino Book Fair is set for Saturday, November 14, at the Hope Center for the Arts at 150 Bridge Street, with doors opening at 10 a.m. and the free, one-day festival running until 5 p.m.
The event is organized by the 7 Arts Latino Foundation and its president and executive director, Jorge David Martinez, who started the fair, according to MassLive.com. Admission is free and open to the public, a detail confirmed by WWLP, which also reports that the book fair will feature 27 published authors and five panel discussions celebrating Latino literature and culture in western Massachusetts. MassLive's reporting, however, puts the author count at 25 — a discrepancy that has not been resolved ahead of the event.
Martinez has described the fair as the only book fair in western Massachusetts specifically targeting the Latino community, and he has said he hopes reading a book can change a person's life. He has also said the fair should help change negative perceptions of Springfield, and that he wants the city to be recognized for hosting the biggest Latino fair in the region, per the same account.
From a Library Reading Room to a 45,000-Square-Foot Arts Hub
The fair's growth has been steady and fast. It began in 2024 at the Mason Square Library, then moved last year to the Springfield Union Station concourse, where WWLP reported it featured 24 authors — a significant increase from the 20 who participated the year before. That inaugural 2024 event included 10 local Latino authors in person alongside 10 more joining virtually from countries across Central and South America and the Caribbean, according to a separate MassLive.com report.
By 2025, the fair had outgrown its original footprint entirely. Union Station was described as able to accommodate more than double the number of authors from the inaugural fair, and that year's daylong event ran from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. with free activities aside from any books attendees chose to buy, per MassLive's 2025 coverage.
Now the fair has a partnership with the Hope Center for the Arts, a 45,000-square-foot purpose-built art studio and performance space in downtown Springfield. Martinez said the move would take the literary initiative to the next level while celebrating the art and culture of the community, and staff at the center have said the fair aligns with its mission and makes it an appropriate venue.
New This Year: An Open Mic and a Mental Health Theme
This year's fair carries a theme of mental health and will include live performances and panel discussions throughout the day. For the first time, the event will also feature an open mic poetry session where attendees can share poems of their choice, according to WWLP's reporting. Panel discussions are set to focus on poetry, female empowerment, Christian literature, Puerto Rican literature and the Latin American novel boom, with several panels specifically featuring Puerto Rican and Latino authors.
Among the scheduled panelists is Angela Bianca Echavarría de Panasiti, who has authored 11 books about Christianity and spiritual warfare and will lead the panel titled Christian Literature and Its Impact on the Community. Other participating authors include Maria Rodriguez Bross, who wrote the Bodega Botanical Tales series; Wanda Ramos, author of Iris in the Window of Happy Days; bilingual poet Mads Rivera, author of Between Breaths; and Inés María Tejada, who wrote Loving the Bronx and Memories of Washington Heights. Liliana Avendaño is also set to take part as both an educator and author.
Music, Live Art and More Than 200 Free Books
Six guest artists and groups are scheduled to perform during the event, including the folk ensemble Bomba de Aquí and Revolution, the Springfield Conservatory of the Arts' student a cappella vocal group, WWLP reports. Also on the lineup are Alex Diaz and Friends and JJ Unplugged, while Martinez himself is set to perform at the opening ceremony on the Hope Stage. Springfield dancer, performing artist and arts educator Kayla Staley, who works as a teaching artist at the Hope Center for the Arts, is also connected to the day's programming.
Visual artist Frankie Borrero will paint a piece live during the fair, adding to a day that organizers describe as blending literature with performance. More than 200 books donated by Baystate Charter Academy Public School will be available for visitors to take home for free, on top of authors' own books, which will be for sale alongside opportunities for attendees to ask questions directly.
For Martinez, the growing scale of the event reflects a bigger ambition: drawing more people, especially members of the Latino community, into literary spaces while reshaping how Springfield is seen from the outside. With a new venue, a new theme and a first-ever open mic, organizers are betting the third year will be the fair's biggest test yet of just how far that vision can travel.
