Festival of books

At the 2013 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, books are just the beginning. Hundreds of authors, celebrities, chefs and musicians will be at the festival, making it one of the largest and most esteemed public literary events in the country.

Not only will there be a variety of literary styles and genres at the festival, but also different forms of art geared toward a diverse audience, making this festival a force to reach out to the Los Angeles community and bring people together.

Catherine Quinlan, dean of USC Libraries and chair of the USC Festival of Books Academic Advisory Committee, said that it is easy to see how the festival has grown so much over the years.

“Although it’s called the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, it could or should be called the Los Angeles Times Festival of Creativity,” Quinlan said. “It has expanded beyond books to literature and creativity [and] integrates different narrative forms. The festival appeals to the community [as well as] students.”

Quinlan also noted that the annual event shines a spotlight on the university and its efforts.

“[This festival] transforms the campus and is a great addition to USC,” Quinlan said. “[It also] provides USC a chance to showcase talent, collaborate with Los Angeles Times and gives the community a chance to learn about [what] USC stages.”

More than 150,000 attendees are expected to attend the event and listen to figures as diverse as legendary comedian and actress Carol Burnett, chef Susan Feniger, Iron Chef Alex Guarnaschelli, beloved author Lemony Snicket and comedian Demetri Martin.

And in a way, the move two years ago from UCLA to the USC campus in the heart of the city has also made the festival more accessible to Angelenos.

For one, the Expo Line, which opened last year and runs adjacent to USC, will allow many people to take public transportation to the festival.

“For the first year, the Metro is running through the USC station, allowing even more Los Angeles residents to make it to the festival from further destinations without having to focus on parking and traffic,” said John Conroy, a member of the Los Angeles Times’ communications team. “We really hope that this added transportation allows even more Angelenos to enjoy all the entertaining activities throughout the two days of the festival.”

Aside from the small white tents that run along Trousdale, there are several larger stages to take note of. The Target Children’s Stage features kid-friendly readings and musicals acts, such as The SqueeGees, a playful kid-pop group. In front of Doheny Memorial Library, the Los Angeles Times Stage will welcome The Breakfast Club star Molly Ringwald and actress Debbie Reynolds. And if you’re getting hungry, the Cooking Stage, acting as a temporary kitchen throughout the weekend for chefs such as Ludo Lefebvre and the aforementioned Guarnaschelli, can be found on Cromwell Field, adjacent to a line of gourmet food trucks.

With increasing attendance since the festival’s first year at USC, there are more opportunities for the festival to incorporate multiple outside sponsors and exhibitors as well as represent artists and authors from the university.

Andrew Allport, a USC alumnus and winner of the 2011 New Issue Poetry Prize, said the commitment to diversity allows the festival to draw in an equally diverse slate of Angelenos.

“The festival offers a real spectrum — you have Margaret Atwood being interviewed by Michael Silverblatt and Brian Boitano selling cookbook sand everything in between,” Allport said. “I think it’s designed to appeal to all kinds of different readers, or perhaps all of the different reading tendencies in each of us.”

Allport will be at this year’s festival to talk about the connections between poetry and place and to read from his book the body | of space | in the shape of the human. He remarked that one of the most important elements of the festival is its ability to familiarize readers with the creative process behind their favorite texts.

“The festival is, I think, an opportunity for students to see and hear authors talking about their work and issues they care about,” Allport said. “Though students have to read lots of books and the whole educational process of the university is, in some sense, made possible by books, it’s easy to forget that authors actually exist.”

Since the festival’s transition to the USC campus, the festival continues to grow as a cultural celebration of multiple art forms. USC School of Cinematic Arts will host a special showing of new comedy Peeples, written and directed by Tina Gordon Chism and starring Kerry Washington and Craig Robinson.

And the festival will incorporate  multimedia in the form of the festival’s “What Are You Reading?” graffiti wall, which will give the festival a unique digital showcase.

Since March 25, fans have been uploading photos of their favorite books via Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #WhatAreYouReading. The photos will be automatically pulled into galleries on the festival website and Facebook page and displayed on screens around the festival grounds.

But while the festival has expanded over the years, Conroy said the organizers have made it a point to try to stay true to the concept behind the first festival.

“The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books began back in 1996 with a simple goal: to bring together the people who create books with the people who love to read them,” Conroy said.

Still, it’s impressive that what started out as a simple event to celebrate literature and its authors has evolved into a nationally recognized melding of culture and community.

“The festival’s original aim was to celebrate the written word,” Conroy said. “Now, books really are just the beginning as the festival has become a true cultural festival with music, cooking demonstrations, engaging and entrepreneurial conversations about political and culturally relevant topics and so much more.”

 

Veronica An contributed to this report.