As an annual gift to the region’s bookworms, a two-day book event filled with panels and author meet-and-greets will arrive just as spring begins. The Tucson Festival of Books will take place this year on March 9 and 10, with author events popping up all throughout the day, leaving attending readers with an overflowing list of authors' discussions to sit in on.
The Tucson Festival of Books is the third-largest book festival in the nation, attracting about 300 authors and over 130,000 book lovers. Admission cost to the festival is free, with some accessible discussions with well-known authors from around the nation. Other events, though, will require advance tickets, which can be found on the festival’s website.
The book fair will be hosted at the University of Arizona’s open-air mall, and gives all literary enthusiasts of all types the chance to engage in conversations with their favorite authors and meet other like-minded readers.
This event also caters to younger readers with plenty of children’s and teen’s events, including author Bob Odenkirk and his wife Erin Odenkirk’s event called “Odenkirk & Odenkirk & Other Important Rhymes.” Other events include “Entering the Universe of Graphic Novels,” “Getting Your Middle Grade Novel Published,” illustrator studios, “Teen Worlds: A Carousel of YA Authors” and much more.
Guests should know that campus parking at the surface-level parking lots is free to all, along with the Highland and Park Avenue garages. 6th Avenue, Tyndall, Cherry Avenue and Main Gate garages are available for parking with a $5 parking fee per vehicle, and free entry granted after 4 p.m. The festival map is available on the Tucson Festival of Books website, as well as disability access information. For guests looking to bring their pets, the Tucson Festival of Books staff suggests the large event of over 100,000 people can be intimidating for them. Only service animals with proper identification will be allowed to enter the festival venues or campus buildings, and any animal displaying aggressive behavior will have to be brought home.
Anyone looking to contribute to the Tucson Festival of Books can do so by donating to the festival or by volunteering as slots are still open for the weekend and post-festival volunteers are needed on Monday, March 11. Volunteer slots still available include author campus escorts, venue line management, operation troubleshooters and many more. Those interested in volunteering can visit the volunteer page on the Tucson Festival of Books website.
One of the highlights of the Tucson Festival of Books is the Festival Founders Award, which honors an author for their literary achievement that has inspired writers and readers. The 2024 Festival Founders Award will be named and presented at the Authors Table Dinner on the University of Arizona campus and is expected to attract over 900 guests.
One of the many authors that will be presenting is Katherine Reay, an award-winning and bestselling Chicago-based writer who publishes both nonfiction and fiction. This will be Reay’s first year presenting at the Tucson Festival of Books, where she will be speaking at panels with other authors titled, “The Search for Hidden Truths,” which will explore the complexities of multilayered storytelling, and “Lost Children,” where the audience will experience the discussion of delving into the creative process of writing about identity, grief and finding ways to heal.
Reay is the author of “A Shadow in Moscow,” “The London House,” “The Austen Escape,” “A Portrait of Emily Price,” “The Printed Letter Bookshop,” and most recently, “The Berlin Letters,” which was published as of this week through Harper Muse on March 5. Reay will be completing a book tour for her latest historical fiction novel through the spring with one of her stops being the Tucson Festival of Books. “The Berlin Letters” covers an unforgettable tale of the Cold War and an individual CIA codebreaker who takes risks to free her father from an East German prison.
“I’m pleased to join this year’s book festival alongside so many talented authors,” Reay shared. “I love visiting Arizona for its red, brown and blue skies, but to visit this time for such an established festival feels all the more exciting. I’m looking forward to the sunshine and warmth, but I’m more looking forward to being a part of such diverse and interesting panels, and connecting with readers.”
Tucson Festival of Books
WHEN: March 9-10
WHERE: University of Arizona Mall, 1303 E. University Boulevard, Tucson
COST: Free, some events ticketed
INFO: www.tucsonfestivalofbooks.org
