LA Times Festival of Books lineup
The L.A. Times Festival of Books runs April 18–19 at USC and includes speakers and panels featuring Amy Tan, Stacey Abrams, Lionel Richie and Sarah Jessica Parker. (latimes.com) Local coverage confirms the festival schedule and high‑profile author appearances for the weekend program. (goweho.com)
The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books returns to the University of Southern California on April 18 and 19, with free general admission and nearly 100 author panels. (latimes.com) The official festival site says the weekend program includes more than 500 authors and celebrities, more than 200 author events and an estimated 150,000 attendees on the University of Southern California campus. (latimes.com) Among the marquee appearances, Amy Tan is scheduled for a Saturday, April 18 conversation at 10:30 a.m. in Bovard Auditorium, while Sarah Jessica Parker is billed for an April 18 event and Lionel Richie for an April 19 conversation about his memoir “Truly.” (tixr.com) (latimes.com) Local coverage also lists Stacey Abrams, Larry David, Lionel Richie and Sarah Jessica Parker among the celebrity authors on this year’s roster, alongside longtime Los Angeles Times moderator Patt Morrison. (goweho.com) The festival opens after a Friday, April 17 Book Prizes ceremony at 7 p.m. in Bovard Auditorium, where Amy Tan is being honored as the 2025 Robert Kirsch Award winner. (latimes.com) For visitors, the main split is simple: outdoor stages and activities are free, while indoor panels and special events require reservations or paid tickets. The ticketing page lists many panel seats at $8.26 and Amy Tan’s Bovard event at $12.11. (tixr.com) The University of Southern California’s festival page describes the event as the country’s largest literary festival and says the campus program also includes university-hosted panels, live music and family activities. (festivalofbooks.usc.edu) That scale helps explain why the lineup ranges from novelists and memoirists to critics, journalists and entertainers with new books to promote. The Los Angeles Times is pitching the weekend as a two-day mix of book signings, conversations and stage events rather than a trade-only publishing gathering. (latimes.com) (festivalofbooks.usc.edu) For anyone deciding whether to go this weekend, the practical takeaway is that admission to the grounds is free, the biggest names are already attached to timed events, and reservations are live now. (latimes.com) (tixr.com)
