This weekend’s LéaLA, a large Spanish-language book fair and literary festival in the U.S., also celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month.
The annual event kicked off Thursday night with a festive event and cultural performance at LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes in downtown Los Angeles, where the festival will be held all weekend.
The book fair theme, “Building Peace Together,” celebrates “pride in Spanish language and Latin American cultures,” using reading as “tools to foster dialogue and harmony,” organizers said.
This year’s free event features over 40 publishers offering a diverse selection of Spanish-language titles. Participants include Pulitzer Prize-winning author Cristina Rivera Garza, cartoonists Jis & Trino, and writers Rosa Beltrán, Hernán Bravo Varela and Évolet Aceves.
In partnership with L.A. Unified, the University of Guadalajara Foundation USA and other community partners, the LéaLA Spanish book fair continues all weekend through Sunday, Sept. 22 — with day-long events from children’s reading workshops, film screenings and poetry readings, to engaging panels with authors and artists from across the U.S., Mexico and Latin America.
“By celebrating our Latin roots, LéaLA strengthens our bond under the banner of the Spanish language,” executive director Marisol Schulz Manaut said.
IF YOU GO
What: LéaLA – Spanish Book Fair & Literary Festival 2024
When: September 20-22, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Where: LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, 501 N. Main Street in Los Angeles
For programming/more information: www.lea-la.com
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