By Justine Sanchez and Pauline Gutierrez, May 6, 2025
The L.A. Times Festival of Books is back, marking its 30th anniversary with a weekend long literary event at the University of Southern California campus.
The country’s largest book festival offered book lovers plenty of new headlines across a variety of genres, as well as authors’ readings and signings.
Each year, this free festival brings approximately 160,000 attendees of all ages, who explore a variety of topics, find new books and talk about them.
“Literacy is so important, there are different organizations here to promote diversity and make reading fun and accessible,” said Diana Bo, a volunteer and first-time attendee. “It’s nice that so many people are here because they love reading and sharing their stories.”
Organizations such as Writers and Publishers Network serve the community and provide information, resources and opportunities for people involved or interested in publishing, whether they are an author, freelance writer, artist or own a publishing company.
“Having thousands of people here under one intention, the love of books and the excitement of books, is amazing,” said Monique DeBose, a volunteer of Writers and Publishers Network. “This is where we belong.”
This festival serves as an opportunity for organizations to promote their goals and engage with the public, as well as provide an environment for up-and-coming voices to market themselves.
At this year’s Festival of Books, debut author Jason G. Waters set up his first booth to introduce his book “Sheldon Majors and The Chase” to the public. For Waters, the experience was more than just selling books, it was about stepping into a new community of readers, writers and storytellers, as well as getting the chance to share a story of discovering who you are in the face of adversity he poured his heart into.
“I think it’s important to make sure that stories are out there being told,” Waters said. “People can read them and relate to them, and find that they’re not alone in whatever differences there are.”
Among the authors at the festival was also Sanman Thapa, a school counselor from New York City. His first published book, “A Fight for a Cup of Chai,” is based on his personal experiences as a factory worker in Nepal during the 1990s. The book details the labor struggles of South Asian factory workers during a period of social and political unrest. This struggle for better working conditions is represented in the workers’ request for tea breaks, or a cup of tea, to help get them through grueling 12-hour shifts.
“It’s about resiliency, hope, you know, fight for justice,” Thapa said. “So, the title kind of doesn’t tell much, but when you read it, it makes sense. It’s a personal journey. Being able to explore and tell a story, I’m hoping, you know, that will inspire a lot of people to share their own story. We all have stories, right?”
This festival has brought together voices from across the literary world for 30 years. Each has played a part in creating an inspirational and informational experience for so many. The love of books is still very much alive, as the Festival of Books continues to be a place where the community comes together to share the passion of storytelling and creativity in different forms.
Feature image courtesy of Justine Sanchez
