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The festivals will take over Logan Circle on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway with more than 200 exhibitors, music, food and more.
(Photos courtesy the Philadelphia Book Festival)

The Philadelphia Book Festival’s fifth annual Street Fair and the inaugural Philadelphia Science Festival Carnival team up this weekend to take over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in a giant dual day-long celebration.

The Book Festival street fair is the largest literary street fair in the entire region, and the first-ever Science Festival Carnival has pulled out all the stops to deliver maximal fun, plus the citywide month-long arts festival PIFA is collaborating with a Franco-Fun Activity Tent & Stage. Translation: buckle up.

Check out some top highlights of both fiestas, as well as detailed maps of the entire event, to help you make sense of all the celebratory madness.

Philadelphia Book Festival Street Fair

• Shakespeare Park Stage: Located in Shakespeare Park in front of the Parkway Central Library, the Shakespeare Park Stage will feature the perennially popular Storybook Parade, musical and dance performances, a juggling act and other family-friendly programming throughout the day.

• PIFA Franco-Fun Stage: In partnership with PIFA, the festival is holding a slew of eclectic French-themed performances at this stage, including an accordion ensemble performance, a “Paint the Story with Madeline” hands-on crafting activity and more.

• Booksellers: Books (tons and tons of them) are clearly the focus here, from national independent sellers to neighborhood shops to individual authors to major publishing houses. Pick up new and used books, chat with agents/editors/publishers/writers, listen to readings and more.

• Food: Dietz & Watson will provide premium deli meats, artisan cheeses and gourmet franks and sausages; also look out for D’Ascenzos’s Gelato, Inc., Bekas Food Service (burgers, fries, funnel cake) and the nearby Whole Foods’ Giving Grill which will benefit the library.

And tons more! Click here for a full list of exhibitors.

Philadelphia Science Festival Carnival

• American Chemical Society’s Painting with Shaving Cream: Investigate the art and science of the creation of colorful marbled paper patterns (a Japanese art form called sumi nagashi, or “ink-floating”) using shaving cream and food color.

• University of the Sciences’ Chemical Twister: Play Periodic Table Twister to learn more about atoms and elements than you can recall from high school chemistry class.

• Chemical Heritage Foundation’s The Chemistry of J-E-L-L-O!: Ever wonder why oranges suspend in Jell-O but pineapple won’t stick? Why roasted tomato–flavored Jell-O was once as popular as cherry? Learn about jello’s chemical composition and societal impact while you sample classic Jell-O recipes.

• Chestnut Hill Academy’s Building Your Own Robot: Learn how to build and program robots using Legos NXT robotic kits.

• Philadelphia Zoo’s Zoo on Wheels: Meet some of the animals from the zoo, plus partake in activities like a bird census and a tiger tracking game on the parkway.

• Food: Hit up favorite Philadelphia are food trucks including Buttercream Cupcake Truck, Bad Dog’s Bone Yard (BBQ) and Far From Home Cafe (delicious comfort food with an emphasis on burgers).

And tons more! Click here for a full list of exhibitors.

Check out two maps of the day’s festivities below, one for the Book Festival and one for the Science Festival.

Here’s an overview of the Philadelphia Book Festival Street Fair:

Click here for more information on what’s located where.

And a bird’s eye view of the Philadelphia Science Festival Carnival:

Click here for more details.

Philadelphia Book Festival Street Fair and Philadelphia Science Festival Carnival
When: Saturday, April 16, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Where: Benjamin Franklin Parkway
Cost: FREE
More info: libwww.freelibrary.org; www.philasciencefestival.org