(FORTUNE Small Business) – Oct. 6-14: A plethora of hot-air balloons--750 of them, to be exact--fills the sky at the 30th annual Kodak Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. It's the largest balloon event in the world. Albuquerque, N.M.; 505-821-1000; balloonfiesta.com.

Oct. 12-14: Listen to authors read from their recent work at the 13th annual Southern Festival of Books. Participating writers include Rick Bragg, Roy Blount Jr., and Bobbie Ann Mason. Flannery O'Connor will be there in spirit. Nashville, Tenn.; tn-humanities.org.

Oct. 1-31: This year marks the 150th anniversary of the publication of Moby Dick. Herman Melville's whaling trip out of New Bedford, Mass., inspired this oft-cited, rarely read American classic, and the town has a roster of commemorative events, including a "Call Me Ishmael" sail around Buzzards Bay and a book party for an anniversary edition of Moby Dick. The celebration also extends inland to the Berkshires, where Peter Jennings will host a gala at Tanglewood to benefit the restoration of Melville's home, Arrowhead. New Bedford, Mass.; 800-508-5353; ci.new-bedford.ma.us.

Oct. 9-13: The Germans aren't the only ones who can throw a mean October party--the Norsk Hostfest in Minot, N.D., is the continent's largest Scandinavian-American festival. Nibble on lutefisk, a kind of dried salt cod, and lefse, or potato pancakes. (It's good, we promise!) Minot, N.D.; 701-852-2368; hostfest.com.

--SASHA SMITH