Not quite wrapping up the Festival of Books

Thousands of attendees at the Festival of Books stopped by the "What Are You Reading" graffiti wall and left their mark, from the Bible on one side to the Koran on the other. The enthusiasm expressed — all those titles filling the enormous banner, the struggle to find a blank space for a beloved book — was inspiring. Publishing industry insiders may say the business is in trouble, but people still love to read. After the jump, more pictures, and a sampling of titles.

Here at Jacket Copy, we went to panels — lots of panels, more than one person could possibly see without a time machine. Although my name often appears here, it was with the focused efforts — and willingness to overcome technological challenges — that a big group of new bloggers covered novelists, celebrities, memoirists, prizewinners, science fiction, real science, California history, sports, new technologies and more. Big thanks to Cecil Castellucci, Chris Daley, George Ducker, John Fox, Lori Kozlowski, Stephanie Harnett, Michelle Maltais, Nick Owchar, Kelsey Ramos, Heather Robertson, Josh Sandoval, Lisa VanLund, Margaret Wappler, Leslie Wiggins and Lauren Williams for their work. And none of their posts would have gotten online without the superhuman efforts of Mary Forgione, who produced all of them with unflagging energy and enthusiasm from a secret bunker on UCLA's campus. Thanks, Mary.

Though the festival is over, we still have some reports left to share with you, on S.E. Hinton, Arianna Huffington's panel on the future of media and more. Stick around. And if you didn't get a chance yet, tell us — what are you reading?

— Carolyn Kellogg

People wrote: Sherlock Holmes, "Watchmen," "Little Bear," "A Wrinkle in Time" and "Principles of Physics."

 

And "Snow" by Orhan Pamuk, "Old Man's War," "House of Leaves," "Dracula," "Llama Llama Red Pajama."

And "Anne of Green Gables," "Columbine" by Dave Cullen, "Looking for Alaska," "The Client," "Molloy" by Samuel Beckett.

 

And "Pastoralia," George Saunders; "Villette," Charlotte Bronte; "Maps and Legends," Michael Chabon; "Consider the Lobster," "The Lovely Bones," "The Diary of Anne Frank," "Blood Meridian," The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time," "Gone With the Wind," "Less Than Zero," Ann Coulter and "The Audacity of Hope."

Photos by Carolyn Kellogg

Comments

[Booked Reader]

Does anyone know when the audio/video of various sessions will be available?

We saw them recording, so the possibility exists!
We hope.

[Edan]

The Great Perhaps by Joe Meno!

[Linda]

Acedia & me by Kathleen Norris

[deepthought]

I have been to the LATFB since the beginning--and have always enjoyed the experience. My favorite "event" are the giant crossword puzzles around the festival areas. Didn't see them this year--a real disappointment.

Only 360 days until the next LATFB--can't wait!

[deepthought]

Booked Reader:

A lot of the sessions were recorded by CSPAN for their weekend BookTV segments--they should appear over the next few weeks.

[emanbruin]

- King Leopold's Ghost
- The Stories of John Cheever

Both are excellent

[A in LA]

-American Wife
-The Brothers Karamazov