The Savannah Book Festival (SBF) announces their closing address headliner:  David Maraniss, New York Times bestselling author and Associate Editor at The Washington Post. He is a three-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and won a Pulitzer for National Reporting for his 1992 coverage of then-presidential candidate Bill Clinton. David is known for outstanding biographies, including When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vincent Lombardi, Clemente: The Passion and Grace of Baseball’s Last Hero, First in His Class: The Biography of Bill Clinton and Barack Obama: The Story. His book They Marched into Sunlight: War and Peace Vietnam and America October 1967 was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.

David’s latest book, Path Lit by Lightning: The Life of Jim Thorpe is a biography of America’s greatest all-around athlete, detailing the enormous odds that a Native American hero had to overcome. Jim Thorpe rose to world fame as a mythic talent who excelled at every sport. He was a gold medal-winning Decathlete and Pentathlete at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics; an All-American football player at the Carlisle Indian School; a major league baseball player for the New York Giants; and a star member of the first class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Despite his colossal success, Jim Thorpe's life was a constant struggle. As a member of the Sac and Fox Nation, he encountered duplicitous authorities who turned away from him when their reputations were at risk. At Carlisle, he experienced racist assimilationist philosophy “Kill the Indian, Save the Man.” His later life was troubled by alcohol, broken marriages, and financial distress. For all his travails, Thorpe did not succumb. The man survived, complications and all, along with his legendary triumph.

The Closing Address will be presented Sunday, February 19^th 2:00pm at the Trustees Theater. Tickets for the Opening Address will go on sale to the public January 13, 2023. SBF Sponsors and Gold Literati members will receive tickets with their sponsorship benefits. Silver Literati members have an opportunity to purchase tickets before the public sale in January. Visit www.savannahbookfestival.org to learn more.  

The Savannah Book Festival Inc. is an independent, non-profit corporation committed to encouraging literacy and the love of books. SBF presents best-selling and emerging authors at a four-day Presidents’ Day weekend event featuring talks by dozens of authors. Festival Saturday, February 18th, which is free and open to the public from 9 am to 5:30 pm, showcases over 40 authors atlocations in downtown Savannah. For more information, please contact Executive Director Tara Setter at 912.598.4040, [email protected] or visit www.savannahbookfestival.org.