The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books: A Celebration of Literature and Community

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books stands as a vibrant testament to the power of storytelling and community engagement. As the largest book festival in the United States, it draws hundreds of thousands of attendees to celebrate the written word. With a rich history spanning over two decades, the festival has become a cultural cornerstone, bringing together authors, readers, and book lovers from all walks of life.

A Literary Extravaganza at USC

Happening April 26-27 at the University of Southern California, the weekend festival will feature celebrity authors and family-friendly entertainment across seven outdoor stages and 15 indoor panel rooms. The annual literary festival brings more than 550 writers, experts and storytellers, and hundreds of exhibitors on the university campus. The festival is a free, public event celebrating the written word.

A Diverse Lineup of Literary Luminaries

This year’s lineup includes “Wicked” director Jon M. Chu, comedian Chelsea Handler, exoneree Amanda Knox, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen, politician Stacey Abrams and poet Amanda Gorman.

Participants scheduled to appear include Stacey Abrams, Hannah Berner, Big Sean, Blippi, Matt Bomer, Hannah Brown, Roy Choi, Jon M. Chu, Marcia Clark, Tom Colicchio, Robert Crais, Jason De León, Paige DeSorbo, Maureen Dowd, Griffin Dunne, Percival Everett, Josh Gad, Amanda Gorman, Max Greenfield, Jasmine Guillory, Chelsea Handler, E.A. Hanks, Mamrie Hart, Robyn Hitchcock, Mellody Hobson, Ibram X. Kendi, Rachel Khong, Kristen Kish, TJ Klune, Amanda Knox, Rachel Kushner, Jonathan Lethem, Joanna “JoJo” Levesque, Jon Lovett, Ivan McCombs, Jim O’Heir, Patrick Renna, Raegan Revord, Krysten Ritter, Veronica Roth, Paul Scheer, Amy L. Schneider, V.E. Schwab, Harry Shum Jr., Jenny Slate, Tika Sumpter, Christina Tosi, Amor Towles, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Wilmer Valderrama, Bruce Vilanch, Gretchen Whitmer, Brooke Williamson, Rebecca Yarros and many more.

Guests such as poet Amanda Gorman, actors Jenny Slate, Krysten Ritter and Wil Wheaton, singer JoJo and comedian Hannah Berner popped by our photo studio to pose for portraits between their busy schedules speaking at panels in front of crowds at the festival.

Spotlighting Notable Personalities

Other notable personalities include Big Sean, Joanna “Jojo” Levesque, Blippi, Marcia Clark, Griffin Dunne, Josh Gad, Percival Everett, Ibram X. Kendi, Rachel Kushner, Jim O’Heir, Jenny Slate, Amor Towles, Wilmer Valderrama, Gretchen Whitmer, Veronica Roth, Robyn Hitchcock, Paul Scheer, Amy L. Schneider, V.E. Schwab, Harry Shum Jr., Tika Sumpter, E.A. Hanks and Mamrie Hart.

Big Sean: Rapper Big Sean, who recently authored “Go Higher: Five Practices for Purpose, Success, and Inner Peace,” spoke Sunday at the festival.
Jenny Slate: Jenny Slate co-wrote “Marcel the Shell With Shoes On,” Oscar nominated in the animated feature category in 2023, and recently wrote the book “Lifeform.” The multi-talent is co-starring in FX’s “Dying for Sex.”
Harry Shum Jr. and Shelby Rabara: Harry Shum Jr. and his wife Shelby Rabara recently wrote their debut children’s book, “Martee Dares to Dance,” about a boy who loves dancing but faces a moment of self-doubt after an embarrassing experience.
Chelsea Handler: Comedian Chelsea Handler, who recently authored “I’ll Have What She’s Having,” spoke Sunday at the festival.
Wilmer Valderrama: Wilmer Valderrama, star of “That ‘70s Show” and author of “An American Story: Everyone’s Invited,” appeared at the festival on Sunday.
Veronica Roth: Veronica Roth, author of the Divergent series adapted into films, most recently penned “When Among Crows.” She appeared at the panel titled “When the Familiar Turns Fantastical: Masters of the Sci-Fi and Fantasy Genres.”
Blippi: Children’s entertainer and author Blippi struck a playful pose at the festival.
E.A. Hanks: E.A. Hanks, who recently wrote a memoir about growing up with her mother and famous actor dad titled “The 10: A Memoir of Family and the Open Road,” spoke Saturday at the festival.
Jasmine Guillory: Jasmine Guillory, whose most recent novel is “Flirting Lessons,” stopped by the photo studio before her Sunday panel, “Romance and the Subgenres.”
TJ Klune: TJ Klune is the author of “The Bones Beneath My Skin,” recently republished by Tor Books in a new edition, and “The House on the Cerulean Sea.”
Krysten Ritter: Actor Krysten Ritter is known for her leading role in the Emmy-winning Netflix series “Jessica Jones” the cult favorite, “Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23,” and AMC’s “Breaking Bad.” In 2025 she published the novel “Retreat” on Harper Books.
Liz Moore: Liz Moore is the author of the 2024 New York Times bestselling novel “The God of the Woods.” She is also the author of the 2020 New York Times-bestselling novel “Long Bright River” and serves as executive producer on Peacock’s limited series based on the novel.
Wil Wheaton: Actor Wil Wheaton is known for his role as Wesley Crusher in “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and other classic roles including Gordie Lachance in the film “Stand by Me,” Joey Trotta in “Toy Soldiers” and Bennett Hoenicker in “Flubber.”
JoJo: Singer JoJo (Joanna Levesque) launched her career in music releasing chart-topping R&B and pop music, including breakout hit “Leave (Get Out).” She gained prominence as a young artist, made a name for herself in acting and released a book in 2024 titled “Over the Influence.”
Rebecca Yarros: Rebecca Yarros, author of the 2025 novel “Onyx Storm.” She is best known for the Empyrean fantasy book series, which will be adapted into a television series with Amazon.

Special Events and Programming

The weekend festival will feature:

A special installment of the Ideas Exchange speaker series on Saturday, April 26 with Amanda Gorman discussing her latest picture book, “Girls on the Rise.” (Individual ticket required.)
Bestselling romantasy author Rebecca Yarros will discuss her latest novel in the Empyrean series, “Onyx Storm.” (Individual ticket required.)
A screening of episode one of Masterpiece PBS’ “Miss Austen,” a four-part miniseries based on the novel by Gill Hornby, followed by a Q&A with Hornby and executive producer Christine Langan.
A sneak peek of Peacock and Sony Pictures Television’s “Long Bright River,” adapted from the novel by Liz Moore, followed by a discussion with Moore, showrunner Nikki Toscano and Andrew Plotkin, EVP of Drama Development at Sony Pictures Television.
Seven outdoor stages and activity areas: L.A. Times Main Stage, De Los Stage in association with L.A. Ulin and other contributors to the commemorative book, “Los Angeles Times Festival of Books: The Whole Story,” reflecting on three decades of gathering the community in the name of storytelling.
Celebrity authors, family-friendly entertainment, Spanish-language programming, interactive games and exhibits.
Expert panels on a variety of topics ranging from politics to pop culture.
More than 350 exhibitors with book signings, merchandise for sale, activities and giveaways.
Live music, food trucks and more.

As a part of the Ideas Exchange speaker series, Gorman will discuss her picture book “Girls on the Rise.” The poet and activist, who gained national fame in 2021 after reciting her poem “The Hill We Climb” at former President Biden’s inauguration, has written several children’s books. Bestselling romantasy author Rebecca Yarros will discuss the latest installment in her Empyrean series, “Onyx Storm.”

The fest will also debut the first episode of PBS Masterpiece’s “Miss Austen,” based on Gill Hornby’s novel. Hornby and executive producer Christine Langan will participate in a Q&A following the screening.

Culinary Delights: The Cooking Stage

The cooking stage will feature demos from Roy Choi, the chef behind Korean-Mexican taco truck Kogi who also wrote “The Choi of Cooking”; two-time James Beard Award-winning chef, Milk Bar Chief Executive and “Bake Club” author Christina Tosi; and “Top Chef” winner and restaurateur Brooke Williamson, who recently penned “Sun-Kissed Cooking.”

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Spanish-Language Programming: The De Los Stage

The De Los Stage in association with L.A. Times en Español will offer a variety of Spanish (and Spanglish) programming. The stage will host panels about the Latino vote, the role of food in community and the late Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela.

Commemorating 30 Years of Literary Gathering

To commemorate the festival’s 30th anniversary, writers Pico Iyer, Lisa See, Héctor Tobar and David L. Ulin, who contributed to the book “Los Angeles Times Festival of Books: Celebrating 30 Years,” will reflect on the community event.

L.A. Times Book Prizes

To kick off the literary weekend, on the evening of Friday, April 25, The Times will host the 45th annual Book Prizes at USC’s Bovard Auditorium. The ceremony will honor award-winning author Pico Iyer with the Robert Kirsch Award for lifetime achievement, Amanda Gorman with the Innovator’s Award and Emily Witt with the Christopher Isherwood Prize for Autobiographical Prose. The Book Prizes recognize 61 exceptional works in 13 categories, including achievement in audiobook production, presented by Audible.

In 2019, Highlights included the L.A. Times Book Prize ceremony, where authors Nafissa Thompson-Spires, Francisco Cantu, and Rebecca Makkai won prizes.

Festival History

The festival began in 1996 and is held on the penultimate weekend of April, hosted by the University of Southern California. The festival was hosted at the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles until 2010. Around that time, University of California officials and event organizers began to disagree on budgetary matters for subsequent iterations of the festival. Event organizers wanted to lower expenditures and thus increase profit through various initiatives which University of California officials did not believe they could accommodate.

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In a C-SPAN interview, festival co-founders Narda Zacchino explained that she and her colleague Lisa Cleri Reale were discussing other book festivals around the country one day, to which Zacchino stated that the Los Angeles Times, where they both worked at the time, might have enough publicity to pull one off so long as there was enough effort put into it.

The 2009 Festival of Books was held on Saturday and Sunday, April 25 and 26, 2009. More than 100 panel discussions and readings, with nearly 450 authors participating, were scheduled in the various classrooms on both days. Topics included "Mystery: A Dark and Stormy Night," "Young Adult Fiction: Problem Child," "Rock & A Hard Place: Security and American Ideals," "Poof! Some of the authors and panelists scheduled for panel discussions were James Ellroy, T.C. Boyle, Kevin J. Anderson, Michael J. Fox, S.E. Hinton, Clive Barker, Diahann Carroll, Ray Bradbury, and Gore Vidal. There were a number of areas set up for authors and moderators to sign their books. Additionally, there were many events planned at the various outdoor stages. Robert Alter, "author of many acclaimed works on the Bible, literary modernism, and contemporary Hebrew literature," received the 29th annual Los Angeles Times Book Prize's Robert Kirsch Award for lifetime achievement.

General Information

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is presented in association with USC. General admission to the festival is free. Friend of the Festival packages (advance ticket packages), which include reservations for indoor conversations, weekend parking and festival merchandise, are available for purchase now. Tickets for the Ideas Exchange with Amanda Gorman are on sale now; tickets for the conversation with Rebecca Yarros will go on sale Friday, March 14. Individual conversation tickets will be available April 20.

General admission to the festival is free. Friend of the Festival packages, which include reservations, parking and merchandise, are currently on sale. More to Read VIP Packages & Special Events.

General admission is free, but special events and indoor panels require tickets. Go VIP for discounts and early access.

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