Edible Book Festival 2025

Edible Book Festival will be March 29th, from 9-5pm. Image description: letters of the word 'edible' look like different foods: eggplant, banana, watermelon, cookie, eclair, and strawberry, above red and green text on a tan background. Images of cakes that look like the Hungry Caterpillar and If You Give a Mouse a Cookie on the top left and top right.

Schedule

All WFL Events March 29th

  • 9:00am: Participants begin dropping off their entries.
  • 11:00am: Entry deadline. Public viewing begins.
  • 1:30pm: Judging
  • 2:00pm: Judge’s comments & awards.
  • 2:30pm: Let’s eat!

What Is the Edible Book Festival?

Around April 1st, bibliophiles, book artists, and food lovers around the world gather to celebrate the book arts and the (literal!) ingestion of culture.  Participants create an “edible book,” which can be inspired by (or a pun on) a favorite tale, title, or poem, or simply be in the shape of a book (or scroll, or tablet, etc).  All entries will be exhibited, documented, then EATEN! 

No pre-registration required! Get creative, or just join us to taste test this year’s entries.

Entry Requirements

  1. Each entry should be inspired by a literary work (fiction or nonfiction) or a literary character, such as recreating a book cover, creating a diorama of a scene, etc. Puns on titles are especially encouraged!
  2. Entries must be mostly edible (occasional non-edible props permitted) and able to display without refrigeration.
  3. If creating more than one submission, please choose one entry for judging and indicate your choice by marking “judged” or “non-judged” in the Literary Inspiration field of the form. Both judged and non-judged entries will be eligible for the People’s Choice popular vote. You do not need to be present at the judging to win!
  4. In order to give all submissions a fair chance to place, each entry will be eligible for all categories, but can only win 1 category.
  5. Your inspiration can come from any published work, regardless of its presence in the Wellesley Free Library’s collection.

Festival Award Categories

Starting to think about your edible creation for this year’s festival? Consider submitting your entry to one or more of these categories! Prizes will be awarded in six categories:

  • Best Kid Creation (must be fully made by ages 12 and under)
  • Best Visual Presentation
  • Funniest/Punniest
  • Best Entry Based on Book for Children or Teens
  • Best Collaborative Creation (groups of 2 or more)
  • People’s Choice

Who Can Participate?

Whether you’re a professional chef or just like to play with your food, the festival is open to anyone in the Wellesley Free Library community. If you don’t have time to make your own edible entry, join us in voting on your favorite and applauding the winners!

For inspiration, take a look at entries from past years across the country in the gallery below.

Cover Image for the Edible Book Festival photo gallery, with the word "edible" made out of food that looks like letters on an orange-flecked background. At the bottom left, a fondant Very Hungry Caterpillar a la Eric Carle's famous books sits atop a white cake with a hole in it, as if the caterpillar took a bite. Also on the cake are frosted pictures of fruits from Carle's books.
Photograph of cake decorated to look like Cthulhu's head and tentacles rising up from a sea of jello cubes. In the bottom right, a green rectangle overlays the picture with black text, reading "The Call of Cthulhu, Courtesy of the Special Collections at John's Hopkins University."
Photograph of a cake and cupcakes decorated to look like the bus and pigeon from Mo Willems' book "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus." Each pigeon has a paper speech bubble quoting the books. In the bottom right, a green rectangle overlays the picture with black text, reading "Don't Let the Pigeon Eat the Cake, Courtesy of the Special Collections at John's Hopkins University."
A photograph of focaccia with overlaid curtains, a rose, and a half-mask all made of dough and poppy seeds. In the bottom right, a green rectangle overlays the picture with black text, reading "The Dough-dom of the Opera, Courtesy of the Special Collections at John's Hopkins University."
A photograph of children's book characters Frog and Toad, here made from fondant and food coloring. Frog is climbing a ladder while Toad stands next to the ladder. In the bottom right, a green rectangle overlays the picture with black text, reading "Frog & Toad, Courtesy of the Special Collections at John's Hopkins University."
Photograph of a glass dish filled with brown cookie crumbs and gummy worms, below a green handmade sign that says "Emily (Com)Post's Etiquette. In the bottom right, a green rectangle overlays the picture with black text, reading "Emily (Com)Post's Etiquette, Courtesy of the Special Collections at John's Hopkins University."
Photograph of a backgammon board made out of brown and tan scone triangles, with round scone pieces. In the bottom right, a green rectangle overlays the picture with black text, reading "A Game of Scones, Courtesy of the Special Collections at John's Hopkins University."
Photo of a flan with chocolate glasses and mustache. In the bottom right, a green rectangle overlays the picture with black text, reading "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Flan, Courtesy of the Special Collections at John's Hopkins University."
Image description: Two trays of focaccia bread with vegetables baked into the top to look like flowers, leaves, and other plants. In the bottom right, a green rectangle overlays the picture with black text, reading "The Secret Garden, Courtesy of the Special Collections at John's Hopkins University."

Supporters

Thank you to our supporters for providing judges, prizes, and more:

The Wellesley Foundation
Lockheart Restaurant

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