S01 E01 - The Word On The Street

[gentle piano and sounds of people on a bustling, happy street]
Rebecca Diem: Imagine walking down your street and finding a bustling celebration on your doorstep. Not for a holiday, or a sporting event, just… books. A party for the written word. From leather-scented literary tomes to brightly-illustrated children’s books, from major publishers to teeny indie presses, offering every genre of story in every medium your heart could desire, and bringing together a community of readers, authors, booksellers and publishers alike.
This was how The Word On The Street was imagined into being. A place where books by Canadian and Indigenous authors are championed in a free, public festival right at the heart of our city, accessible to all. And for 30 years, that’s exactly what happened. The Word