9 Greatest Books About Festivals You Must Learn

Searching for some books about festivals to spice up your assortment? And even, give as a present? Listed below are among the finest competition books on the market to gas your competition fancies…

Say what you’ll about us people, however we certain know how one can occasion. Simply have a look at the sheer variety of festivals going down all around the world, from large outside musical extravaganzas to saint day shindigs and different non secular or cultural occasions. Whereas customs and traditions might range, they’re all constructed round a single premise: folks coming collectively to have fun one thing that issues to them.  

For those who’re a eager traveller, visiting among the best and largest festivals all over the world ought to actually be in your bucket record. And whereas I’ve written a lot about festivals on this website, there’s each likelihood that if you happen to’re a fan, you’ll need to delve deeper into the topic. 

So listed here are among the finest books about festivals. With Christmas developing, these would make nice items for any competition fan with wanderlust…     

Books About Festivals

The competition books you want in your life to bridge that hole between competition weekends.

By Victoria Philpott (ME!)

It could really feel remiss of me to start out this record of finest books about festivals with out giving mine a plug! Festivals are my specialist topic, having visited 62 in 22 completely different nations. And I used that information to put in writing Have a good time!

My 207-page espresso desk e book tells the historical past of among the most important non secular, music, meals, and sports activities festivals all over the world and gives loads of sensible recommendation for anybody planning to attend. The record consists of a few of my favourites — Glastonbury, Dia de Los Muertos, Las Fallas and SXSW — plus others I’ve spent a very long time researching and hope to go to in the future.

If any of your family members are planning on travelling the world and visiting a competition or two in 2023, that is the perfect stocking filler!

You should purchase my e book Celebrate! at Blackwells… or Amazon on these hyperlinks.

2. The Street To Woodstock

By Michael Lang

Undoubtedly, one of the crucial well-known festivals in historical past was The Woodstock Music and Artwork Honest. The occasion happened on the finish of the swinging sixties towards a backdrop of the Vietnam Conflict and the rise of Counterculture and was billed as ‘three days of peace and music.’ It’s one of the crucial necessary festivals ever to grace the competition scene.

Iconic artists resembling The Who, Janis Joplin and maybe most famously, Jimmy Hendrix, performed to a crowd of round half 1,000,000 folks over three days. The person accountable for reserving these acts was promoter Michael Lang, who’s written this acclaimed account of the chaos that went into organising the enduring competition. Buy The Road to Woodstock for an incredible perception into one of the crucial iconic festivals there ever was.

3. Lonely Planet: 50 Festivals To Blow Your Thoughts

Lonely Planet’s journey guides are among the finest round. Regardless of the place on the earth you’re planning to go to, the probabilities are they’ve compiled a complete bunch of professional suggestions to assist. So the truth that 50 Festivals To Blow Your Mind bears their identify is an efficient signal — you realize the knowledge is authoritative and reliable.

Its record is damaged down into classes of festivals, together with all motion, foodie, music, off-the-wall, and people which might be only one large occasion, so it caters to all tastes. And it options world-famous occasions resembling Glastonbury and Mardi Gras alongside some which might be quirkier and fewer well-known. The Finnish Spouse Carrying Pageant, anybody? 

4. The Large Ebook of Festivals

By Marita Bullock & Joan-Maree Hargreaves

This e book’s wonderful if you happen to’re seeking to introduce kids to the way in which completely different cultures have fun all over the world. It explains the historical past of occasions resembling Diwali, Dia de Los Muertos and the Maori celebration of Matariki in a transparent and accessible method and there are many good illustrations to have a look at, too.

The Big Book of Festivals is unquestionably among the finest books about festivals for curious younger minds.  

5. Glastonbury 50: The Official Story of Glastonbury Pageant

By Micheal Eavis and Emily Eavis

Glastonbury’s fiftieth anniversary might have been overshadowed by the worldwide pandemic, however 210,000 revellers greater than made up for it when the competition returned to Worthy Farm final summer season. It was a far cry from the unique incarnation of the occasion, the ‘Pilton Pop, Folks and Blues Pageant’, which was attended by simply over 1,000 folks every paying £1 a ticket.

This official Glastonbury 50 book paperwork the years in between and tells the tales of among the most iconic headline units, from David Bowie to Dolly Parton. It is a nice e book about festivals for any Glasto obsessives on the market!

6. Festivals: A Music Lover’s Information to the Festivals You Want To Know

by Oliver Keens

For those who take pleasure in attending music festivals all over the world, it’s possible you’ll discover some inspiration on your subsequent journey in this book by DJ and music journalist Oliver Keens.

Half nostalgic historical past lesson, half sensible guidebook, it covers all the most important occasions — Glastonbury, Coachella, Fuji Rock — and a few of these which might be a little bit off the overwhelmed monitor, resembling Marrakesh’s Oasis. 

7. The Pageant Ebook

by Michael Odell

First-time competition goer? This survival guide written by The Occasions journalist Michael Odell has high suggestions that will help you get probably the most out of your expertise, and consists of loads of movie star anecdotes too. For those who’ve ever questioned what to put on, what to pack, or how on earth you’re purported to survive a mud tub, you’ll discover the solutions right here.  

I imply, to be trustworthy, you’ll find all that data on this right here weblog and save your self £10, however if you happen to prefer to learn this stuff in print – this might be the e book about festivals for you.

by Benjamin Wachs

Burning Man is not like some other competition on the earth. There’s no official programme; as an alternative, it’s a short lived camp that pops up within the desert every year centred round a unfastened theme. And it attracts tens of 1000’s of individuals.

On this e book, serial attendee Benjamin Wachs gives a historical past of the occasion and the philosophy behind it, which he believes might be used to re-organise society. 

Pageant posters are sometimes artworks in their very own proper, with the likes of Keith Haring and Andy Warhol among the many notable names who’ve turned their arms at vibrant occasion adverts. This e book talks in regards to the strategy of designing posters for festivals and gala’s and gives inspiration for any would-be promoter.  

The most effective books about festivals 

Festivals are an extremely necessary a part of human tradition, so it’s no marvel that so many books have been written on the topic. 

I hope this record gives some gift-giving inspiration for the competition followers in your life — whether or not they’d recognize an in-depth historical past of an iconic competition resembling Glastonbury or Woodstock, complete lists of probably the most notable cultural and non secular occasions all over the world to encourage their travels, or a information to assist them survive their first competition. 

And if all that’s put you within the competition temper, try these 55 Distinctive World Festivals for Your 2023 Bucket Record.