The 10th annual National Book Festival “A Decade of Words and Wonder” began a week of free activities September 20 with “Hardcover Mysteries”, a discussion with authors David Baldacci, Sandra Brown and Kathy Reichs.

It's inspired by a TV series of the same name that premieres October 11 on Investigation Discovery.

The three authors discussed books they’ve written based on true events, took questions from the audience, and signed books at the Library of Congress, sponsor of the National Book Festival this Saturday, September 25.

The advance events are in the Coolidge Auditorium, Library of Congress' Thomas Jefferson Building, ground floor, 10 First Street, SE.

On Thursday, September 23, National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Katherine Paterson, acclaimed author of “Bridge to Terabithia” and “Jacob Have I Loved”, will read from her works, talk about them, and engage with the audience, mostly young people.

Thursday’s event begins at 11 AM in the Coolidge Auditorium.

The festival itself on Saturday, September 25, begins with the following events at various pavilions: For a full list of author presentations and a site map, click here.

10 AM: Presentation by Isabel Allende, whose most recent novel is “The Island Beneath the Sea” (HarperCollins). Allende will receive the Library of Congress’ 2010 National Book Festival Creative Achievement Award. She wrote her first book, “The House of the Spirits”, after fleeing from Chile where her uncle, Chilean President Salvador Allende, was assassinated during a military coup in 1973.

10 AM: “The Exquisite Corpse Adventure,” a humorous, exciting story written by many prominent children’s authors and available exclusively at www.Read.gov. National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Katherine Paterson will be joined by M.T. Anderson, Mary Brigid Barrett, Timothy Basil Ering, Linda Sue Park and James Ransome for a “Readers’ Theater” performance of the final episode of the story. It was launched at the 2009 National Book Festival by Paterson’s predecessor, Jon Scieszka.

10:35 AM: Presentation by former First Lady Laura Bush on her recent memoir, “Spoken from the Heart” (Simon & Schuster). She hosted the first National Book Festival in 2001. (President and Michelle Obama are honorary chairs this year.)

10:35 AM: Presentation by Jonathan Franzen, whose new novel is “Freedom” (Farrar, Straus & Giroux). He is best known for his book “The Corrections”.

10:35 AM: Presentation by Suzanne Collins, author of “Mockingjay” (Scholastic), the final book in “The Hunger Games” trilogy.

10:35 AM: Launch of “Gateway to Knowledge”, a traveling exhibition made possible by a major gift from philanthropists Abby and Emily Rapoport. This 18-wheel tractor-trailer, which expands to double its road width, will bring the Library of Congress over the next several months to some 60 towns in the South and Midwest via museum-quality exhibits with facsimiles of top treasures, videos and interactive features.

The “Gateway to Knowledge” truck will be parked on the festival grounds at Fourth Street, SE. Librarian of Congress Billington and members of the Rapoport family will attend.

12:45 PM: Presentation by Ken Follett, author of “Fall of Giants” (Penguin), the first book in “The Century Trilogy”.

The event continues until 5:30 PM Saturday.  About 130,000 people attended last year.

For more info: National Book Festival, www.loc.gov/bookfest, September 25, 10 AM to 5:30 PM, National Mall between Third and Seventh Streets, SE, Washington, DC.