It has been 25 long years since the LA Times Festival of Books was founded. This grand literary festival is an event that no bookworm would want to miss. This is one of the largest book festivals in the United States that can gather over 150,000 participants yearly. The LA Times in partnership with the University of Southern California (USC) brings together prominent and rising authors, writers, poets, artists, storytellers, filmmakers, vendors, and publishers all in one place. An event that has become a vital component of the Los Angeles cultural and educational scene. This is a fun event for everyone since this promotes literacy and reading. Book lovers are offered countless original works of books, art, photographs, and films on display. Through the years, the LA Times and USC never fail to amaze participants. Numerous events and big names in the industry are invited all for the attendees, young and adult alike. Each year, the Festival of Books gets bigger, grander, and more fun.
However, this year’s festival of books was met with an unexpected situation. The whole world was on lockdown. Libraries were shut down. Events were canceled. Despite the pandemic, many would not allow this to stop the fun and plans. People are now turning their attention online. Doing anything online. And the LA Times would not miss this opportunity. The 2020 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books goes virtual. The 25th year celebration of the Festival of Books will be like no other. Some delays pushed the event to start at a later date. This free event is always held on a penultimate weekend in April each year. This literary festival was pushed to mid-October and to make things more interesting, this will not be the regular two-day event. This virtual community gathering will commence on October 18 and will end on November 17 to give virtual attendees a chance to attend all events. The LA Times Festival of Books schedule is fully booked for four weeks straight. In celebration of their 25 years, there are 25 events that attendees can attend virtually and for free. The remaining virtual events you may join are the following:
Thursday, November 5, 2020
6:00 PM All Hail Contemporary Romance!
Casey McQuiston, Jasmine Guillory, Rebekah Weatherspoon, and
Moderator Elissa Sussman
Friday, November 6, 2020
5:00 PM USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance Fall Performance
Monday, November 9, 2020
6:00 PM What’s Next? The State of the American Economy
Jennifer Taub, Mehrsa Baradaran, Sarah Chayes, and Kimbriell Kelly
Tuesday, November 10, 2020
6:00 PM Seeking Freedom: Race, Gender, and Citizenship,
Presented by USC
Ariela Julie Gross, Kristen L. Zaleski, Sam Erman, and Alaina Morgan
Wednesday, November 11, 2020
6:00 PM Educator and Author Ilyasah Shabazz (Growing Up X) and Editor Abby West discuss Audible’s Unabridged Audio Edition of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, performed by Laurence Fishburne
Audible, Ilyasah Shabazz, and interviewer Abby West
Thursday, November 12, 2020
5:00 PM Marilynne Robinson, Author of “Jack” in Conversation with
Héctor Tobar
Marilynne Robinson and interviewer Héctor Tobar
Friday, November 13, 2020
12:00 PM Science and Medicine: Looking at the Coronavirus and Pandemics
Debora Olivia Mackenzie, Nicholas Christakis, Sonia Shah, and
Moderator Soumya Karlamangla
Tuesday, November 17, 2020
6:00 PM Jim Gray, Author of “Talking to GOATs: The Moments You
Remember and the Stories You Never Heard,” in Conversation with
Chris Stone, LA Times Executive Sports Editor
Jim Gray and interviewer Chris Stone
If you are interested in joining this virtual gathering, reserve a virtual front-row seat of this free celebration on the official website of The Times. The Times will continue to monitor the health protocols for next year’s event. They have plans on holding the 2021 Festival of Books on April 17-18, 2021 on the USC grounds.
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