LA Times Festival of Books 2022

Last weekend, on Sunday, April 24, I went to the LA Times Festival of Books at USC. This was the first time I had ever gone and I was amazed at everything.

They had booths out under tents with authors displaying their books, little stands where you could buy books, and stages for book readings and interviews with authors. It was free to go see most of these, but there were also tickets you could buy to go indoors and see a panel of authors. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get to do that and didn't buy tickets but even so, I still had a wonderful time. I even got some free bookmarks.

For most of the time I spent at the festival, the booths and books I was near had to do with self-publishing, memoirs, and self-help/mental wellness books. While I understand the value of these books, they weren't really my specific taste so I didn't get any. Turns out, there was a YA section the whole time. (I didn't even realize that the flags on top of the tents were color-coded by genre. Oops.) I went over to the YA section and luck was on my side because Nicola Yoon, an author whose book I had read before and loved, was sitting signing copies of her new book. I was so excited so I bought a copy and waited in line to get it signed. The wait wasn't too long, maybe five minutes. I felt positively giddy and the experience was amazing.

This was the first time I'd been to a book signing and actually met an author I liked.

Below are some pictures of Nicola Yoon's new release, Instructions for Dancing, and the note she gave me inside the cover.

I can't wait to read this book and post a review on it.

I loved the LA Times Festival of Books and I can't wait to go again next year!

Comment below if you've ever gone to the LA Times Festival of Books or if you've been to a book signing, had a book signed before, etc. I'd love to chat with you in the comments!