Las Vegas Book Festival Returns
After going entirely virtual last year for the first time due to the pandemic, the Las Vegas Book Festival returns to an in-person format on October 23rd for its 20th anniversary. This annual event is the largest literary event in Nevada, celebrating the written, spoken, and illustrated word.
The festival occurs from 9 AM to 6 PM at the Historic Fifth Street School on 401 South 4th Street in downtown Las Vegas. A virtual version of the event begins October 18th and runs through the 22nd.
This year’s list of keynote speakers features a diverse line-up of authors, poets, journalists, editors, and other notable guests, including chefs and musicians. Some of these speakers include Fran Lebowitz, Sandra Cisneros, and Dr. Oriel María Siu. View the entire list of speakers here.
Event Schedule
Virtual Book Festival
From the 18th through the 22nd, starting at 8 AM daily, the Book Festival’s Virtual Reading Week takes place.
Each day, different guest speakers will do poetry readings, book readings, and workshops. Some of these sessions have limited availability and require one to register beforehand.
In-person Festival
The schedule for the in-person festival varies by tent or location throughout the day. Activities include panels of authors, poetry and book readings, and other workshops. In addition to these literary offerings, the festival also showcases demonstrations by local chefs and even some musical performances.
For additional information about the activities listed below, visit the festival schedule.
Auditorium
- 9:00 AM: Rebeldita! – Keynote: Dr. Oriel María Siu
- 10:45 AM: NEA Big Read: Sandra Cisneros, The House on Mango Street – Keynote: Sandra Cisneros
- 1:00 PM: A Map to Nowhere: Featuring Poet James Norman
- 2:30 PM: Covering the News: Past, Present, and Future – Moderated by Steve Sebelius; Featuring: Stephen Bates, Jonathan Rauch, and Christina Bellantoni
- 4:00 PM: Fran Lebowitz in conversation with Dayvid Figler
Inspired Tent
- 9:00 AM: Writing for Teens and Tweens – Moderated by: Cyndy DeLeon; Featuring: Axie Oh, Brandie June, Veeda Bybee, Lindsay Leavitt, and Ken Lamug
- 10:15 AM: Literary Oasis: Following Voices of Identity & Wonder – Moderated by Sreshtha Sen; Featuring: Faylita Hicks, and Mary South
- 11:30 AM: Roaming the Desert: Writing Home and Landscape – Featuring Kendra Atleework, and Victoria Blanco
- 1:00 PM: Let’s Talk about Romance – Moderated by Crystal Perkins; Featuring Priscilla Oliveras, Farrah Rochon, Jayci Lee, and Sonali Dev
- 2:45 PM: Happily Ever After (HEA) Guaranteed – Moderated by Crystal Perkins; Featuring: Vanessa Riley, Rachel Van Dyken, Jen DeLuca, and Naima Simone
Empowered Tent
- 9:30 AM: New Ways to Write About Vegas – Moderated by Scott Dickensheets; Featuring: Nicholas Russell, Summer Thomad, Soni Brown, and Jennifer Battisti
- 10:45 AM: Far From Respectable – Featuring: Daniel Oppenheimer and David L. Ulin
- 12:15 PM: Musings on the Mojave – Moderated by Geoff Schumacher; Featuring: Ken Layne, Keri Miki-Lani Schroeder, Teri Vela, and Krystal Ramirez
- 1:45 PM: Yosimar Reyes: Agents of Power
- 3:15 PM: The Art of Contemporary Bookmaking – Moderated by Keri Miki-Lani Schroeder; Featuring: Sarah Maker, Mark Sarigianis, and Levi Sherman
- 5:15 PM: Silver State Student Symposium – Featuring Jen Neils
Poetry Pavillion
- 9:15 AM: Beyond the Neon Spoken Word – Moderator: Ms. AyeVee; Poets: Smokey Tone, Petit Monstre, Wynter Storm, and Vanessa Latrice Williams
- 10:30 AM: Fractured Narratives, Truth, and Trauma – Featuring: Jennifer Battisti and Heather Lang-Cassera
- 11:45 AM: Sagebrush to Sandstone: A Humanities Guide to Outdoor Nevada – Moderated by Scott Dickensheets and Kathleen Kuo; Featuring: Angela M. Brommel, Rodney Lee, and Elizabeth Quiñones-Zaldaña
- 1:00 PM: Spark! Youth Poetry Competition – Moderated by: Maryjane Dorofachuk
- 5:00 PM: Ken Layne: A Reading of Desert Oracle
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Imagination Tent
- 10:00 AM: Daria Peoples – Reading from America, My Love, America, My Heart
- 10:45 AM: Sarah Mlynowski – Reading Whatever After: Good As Gold
- 11:30 AM: Jen Nails – Reading from One Hundred Spaghetti Strings
- 12:15 PM: Axie Oh – Reading from XOXO
- 1:00 PM: Ken Lamug – Illustrator Demonstration
- 1:45 PM: Emily Couture – Reading from The Bird and the Whale: A Story of Unlikely Friendship
- 2:30 PM: Luke Anderson – Reading from the Hockey Penguin collection
- 3:15 PM: Leonie Mowat – Reading from Jackson: The Red Rock Canyon Burro
- 4:00 PM: Brittany Green – Reading from the Little Black Boy and Little Black Girl series
- 4:45 PM: Brandie June – Reading from Gold Spun
Discovery Tent
- 9:30 AM: The Nik Naks
- 11:00 AM: Tia Leah’s Neighborhood
- 12:30 PM: The Unwieldies
- 2:00 PM: Ms. AyeVee
Engaged Tent
- 10:15 AM: Chef Cheyenne Kyle – Representing the Obodo Collective, preparing a coconut and plantain a hudut stew.
- 12:00 PM: Chef DJ Flores of Milpa Café & Molino – Preparing a tetela with heirloom beans, and hoja Santa paired with a squash mole.
- 1:45 PM: Chef Jen Nails – Preparing a recipe closely tied to her book One Hundred Spaghetti Strings.
Conference Room 140
- 9:30 AM: A Map to Somewhere: A Workshop with Poet James Norman
- 10:30 AM: Creating Monsters: Reimagining Fairy Tales with Morally Grey Heroes and Villains – With Brandie June
- 12:15 PM: Print, Fold, and Read: Build Your Own Mini-Book Collection – With Quarantine Public Library
- 1:45 PM: Creating Innovative Book Structures for Storytelling – With Keri Miki-Lani Schroeder
- 3:15 PM: Documenting Joy – With Yosimar Reyes
Room 125
- 11:00 AM: Quarantine Public Library: Sharing Artists’ Books during the COVID-19 Pandemic – Featuring Tracy Honn and Katie Garth
- 12:00 PM: Documenting Social Movements Through Images – Featuring Judy Polumbaum
- 1:30 PM: Revealing the Hidden History of Women – With Vanessa Riley
COVID Guidelines
To protect from COVID-19, the event requires all in-person participants to wear a mask indoors and under the tents. The majority of the festival will be held outdoors, with some activities inside. With part of the festival being outside, warm clothing is also recommended in the morning and early evening.
If you feel sick, are experiencing any symptoms, or have been in contact with anyone ill or showing symptoms, please stay home and refrain from attending the festival in person. Much of the virtual festival will be available for you to participate in the safety of your home.
#GetinMotion with the Las Vegas Book Festival
To learn more about the festival and hear the latest news, visit their website and follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
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