For its 20th anniversary, the Las Vegas Book Festival returns to full strength. After a fully virtual event in 2020 due to COVID, this iteration will embrace the best of both worlds, with a main event at the Fifth Street School and a variety of online offerings.
2021 guest speaker Fran Lebowitz
“We were proud of what we were able to put together last year,” says Festival Director Ally Haynes-Hamblen, the director of Las Vegas’ Office of Cultural Affairs. “But I think we’re all really excited to get back to the energy of being in person this year.”
Over its two decades, the book festival has undergone many changes, sometimes having focused on children’s offerings and other times spotlighting the literary, Haynes-Hamblen says. The fest has found a balance by offering something for everybody: a kid’s area with song, dance and children’s authors, a robust lineup of programming for adults and even YA offerings.
2021 guest speaker Dr. Oriel María Siu
“Now that we’re at 20 years, I feel like it’s really hitting its stride and coming into its own as a book festival that can really stand up to other book festivals that happen around the country,” Haynes-Hamblen says.
Looking forward to the next 20 years, Haynes-Hamblen hopes to continue growing the festival so that it becomes a tourist attraction in its own right. She envisions the in-person panels, books sales and vendor exhibitions lasting a full week.
For now, the festival is making the most of what it has. The October 23 main event is packed with so many goodies, it might be difficult to decide which to attend. With at least nine separate areas going at once, it will truly be a buffet of bookish fun.
The Fifth Street School’s auditorium will host the biggest names, such as author and commentator Fran Lebowitz (4 p.m.) and children’s keynote Dr. Oriel María Siu (9 a.m.). The Discovery Tent hosts music, spoken word, dancing and storytelling. The Poetry Pavilion will host the Spark! Youth Poetry Competition (1 p.m.) and much more.
The Empowered Tent is where you’ll find the more focused literary panels, such as “New Ways to Write About Vegas” (9:30 a.m.), “Musings on the Mojave” (12:15 p.m.), “The Art of Contemporary Bookmaking” (3:15 p.m.) and a discussion about art critic Dave Hickey (10:45 a.m.)
The 2019 Las Vegas Book Festival
Another fun feature: the wine garden, which debuted two years ago. “That was hugely successful, because parents can sit in a wine garden and have an unobstructed view of the kids’ area,” Haynes-Hamblen says. Organizers have added a “juice box bar” for younger attendees, “so parents and kids alike can have a moment to sit down and enjoy the book festival.”
Additional culinary flavors include food trucks and cooking demonstrations at the Engaged Tent. “We really pay attention to the fact that chefs who write recipes are also participants in the written word,” Haynes-Hamblen says. “Cookbooks are a huge segment of any bookstore.”
The visual arts have long played a supporting role at the Book Festival, and 2021 will be no exception. Graphic artist Geovany Uranda designed this year’s poster. Justin Favela’s art will be displayed on-site in the Mayor’s Gallery. And, in continued festival programming, Nevada Humanities’ “P.S. I Love You Postcard Project” will offer postcard kits at the main event and then later host an exhibition discussion via Zoom on November 4 at 6 p.m.
Justin Favela’s “Fruits of Our Labor”
So how to choose? Haynes-Hamblen suggests looking at the schedule (lasvegasbookfestival.com), blocking out a few priority sessions and then leaving time for exploration and discovery. “Maybe spend some time just lingering among our vendors, in the book sales area or even in the wine garden,” Haynes-Hamblen says. “There should be plenty of opportunity to just hang out and enjoy the beautiful weather, as well as a lot of really great browsing and window shopping.”
Las Vegas Book Festival Virtual events begin October 18; main event October 23, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., free. Historic Fifth Street School, 401 S. 4th Street, lasvegasbookfestival.com.
