Larry Gennari started his book festival with a simple and relatable idea: to share his love of reading with people.
Gennari, the lawyer, BC law professor and philanthropist, brings a book wherever he goes. His love of reading led him to realize, he says, that even if readers can’t agree on their interpretations of a book, they can all agree that they like to share books. The only problem was, no book festivals focused on the books Gennari wanted to share: books about business for entrepreneurs and innovators.
So Gennari created Authors and Innovators, his inaugural book festival, eight years ago. The Watertown book festival revolves around business books that can help everyone from CEOs to entrepreneurs and even regular bibliophiles.
"I find these books and get excited because how can you not read about Susan Rogers? How can you not want to read about 'Your Brain on Art'? How can you not want to dig in and say, 'Why am I doing what I'm doing?'" Gennari asked.
This year's festival theme is "Storytelling and the Workforce Narrative: The Importance of Why," or, as Gennari puts it, "the persuasive entrepreneur leveraging the power of storytelling to explore your journey. "
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Gennari's goal is to have people come and listen in on panels and walk away with a better idea of how to grow a brand, raise money, or sell a company.
The festival also hosts several innovators, including five entrepreneurs trying to build their brands: Endstate, Fancy Pants Baking Co., Harriet of Harlem, Helios Hockey, and One Degree Outside.
The festival aims to serve as a space where entrepreneurs from Gennari’s Project Entrepreneur program, a 12-week business law fundamentals boot camp dedicated to helping recently incarcerated individuals launch their businesses.
“We build community by pulling people back into the community. And so for a lot of them, this is the first time they've been at an event where they can be seen as the CEO for their startup, and they're mixing with other businesspeople,” Gennari said.
The event starts Thursday at The Mosesian Center for the Arts at 321 Arsenal St., Watertown.
The event is free and open to anybody looking for new books to read or people to connect with.
“It’s a chance, as I often tell people, to expand their network and broaden their perspective. It's all curated, it's all in one place, and it's all free — always free,” Genarri said.