LA Festival of Books
- The Los Angeles Times reports the Festival of Books ran April 18–19 at USC with packed panels and big crowds. (latimes.com) - Organizers expected up to 155,000 attendees across the weekend, and Rafu Shimpo noted over 500 authors and celebrities. ( ) - The weekend featured many must‑see panels, free general admission, and ticketed special events. (latimes.com)
The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books turned the University of Southern California into a two-day book fair this weekend, with organizers expecting about 150,000 to 155,000 visitors. (latimes.com) (rafu.com) The festival ran Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19, on the USC campus, where readers moved between author panels, signings, exhibitors and outdoor stages. The Los Angeles Times bills it as the biggest book festival in the country. (latimes.com) (festivalofbooks.usc.edu) This year’s event featured more than 500 authors and celebrities, with USC Annenberg listing more than 600 authors, seven stages, 300 exhibitors and 14 panel rooms tied to the weekend program. (rafu.com) (annenberg.usc.edu) General admission was free, which covered the outdoor festival grounds and activities, while some indoor conversations and special events required reservations or paid tickets. (latimes.com) (ktla.com) (tixr.com) That setup makes the weekend part public street festival and part curated conference: families can walk in without a ticket, while high-demand sessions are managed through reservations. LA Parent’s family guide said free admission included outdoor experiences and children’s programming. (tixr.com) (laparent.com) The scale also shows how the festival has grown into a civic event as much as a publishing event. USC’s festival site describes it as a literary and cultural celebration with panels, music and family activities spread across the University Park campus each spring. (festivalofbooks.usc.edu) (annenberg.usc.edu) The 2026 lineup mixed novelists, memoirists and celebrities, with reports ahead of the weekend naming guests including Sarah Jessica Parker, David Duchovny, Lionel Richie, Tina Knowles, Margaret Atwood and Anne Lamott. (currentsaucenews.com) (foxla.com) (kirkusreviews.com) The event opened alongside the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes, which Fox 11 Los Angeles reported were held Friday night before the public festival weekend and included a lifetime achievement honor for Amy Tan. (foxla.com) By Sunday, the picture was familiar: a free campus-wide festival built around books, big names and long lines, with USC again serving as the center of one of Los Angeles’ biggest annual cultural weekends. (latimes.com) (festivalofbooks.usc.edu)
