Concord, Massachusetts
Two weeks of talks, readings, and discussions celebrating the written and the spoken word.
Randall Kennedy
Ha Jin
Anita Hill
Stephen Greenblatt
How You Can Participate
- Attend: Most events are free. All events are open to the public. Events that require a ticket are so indicated and include information about how and where to obtain tickets.
- Donate: The festival is produced by a non-profit foundation and depends greatly on individual support. Tax deductible donations in any amount are encouraged and can be made online.
- Sponsor: Corporate sponsorship is welcomed and is available. For information please .
Concord Festival of Authors is funded in part by the Massachusetts Cultural Council,
a stage agency
Major Sponsors:
Eric Jay Dolin
Events: History of the Fur Trade in America
Book: Fur, Fortune, and Empire: The Epic History of the Fur Trade in America
Eric Jay Dolin holds degrees in biology and environmental studies from Brown University, and a master’s and doctorate in environmental policy from Yale University and MIT, respectively. He has written extensively on the intersection between American history and natural history. His most recent book is Leviathan: The History of Whaling in America.
In Fur, Fortune, and Empire he describes how the fur trade transformed this country. From the establishment of the first trading posts to the dissolution of John Jacob Astor’s vast American Fur Company and the near destruction of the buffalo, Dolin shows how the fur trade was not some fringe history about wild mountain men and trappers like Kit Carson, but one of the key motivating forces in the imperial struggle for the colonies, and later the driving inspiration for America’s westward expansion.