Courtesy photo
By Darlene Donloe
Contributing Writer
CULVER CITY — Book lovers of all ages are invited to the Culver City Book Festival Feb. 22.
The free event will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Wende Museum, 10808 Culver Blvd.
The Wende is an art museum, cultural center and archivist of the Cold War that preserves history and brings it to life through exhibitions, scholarship, education, and community engagement.
The Culver City Book Festival celebrates the written word and will highlight the work of local authors, publishers, journals and literary nonprofits.
It is a partnership between the Culver City Arts Foundation, Village Well Books & Coffee, El Martillo Press, Beyond Baroque, the Wende Museum, and the city.
Five years ago, Jennifer Caspar founded Village Well Books & Coffee, the only independent general-interest bookstore in Culver City. The bookstore carries 15,000 titles in all formats and genres.
The store, located in the heart of downtown Culver City across from City Hall and the Kirk Douglas Theatre, hosts various literary events, community gatherings and artistic workshops and programs. The café serves healthy drinks, snacks and meals, including beer and wine.
Village Well Books & Coffee is the official organizer of this year’s book festival.
“This festival is intended to be accessible to and inclusive of the many creative voices in our community,” said Caspar, who studied English at Georgetown. “Village Well is an independent bookstore and café in downtown Culver City. We opened in 2020. We are delighted to be the organizers for this year’s festival, which gathers and channels the energy of this very creative community.”
Caspar, whose favorite books as a child were “A Little Princess” by Frances Hodgson Burnett and “The Great Brain” series by John Dennis Fitzgerald, said this year’s festival is bigger, with high-profile panels and something for everybody.
In addition to tables exhibiting the work of local presses, there will be panels on a variety of topics.
A discussion on immigration will feature Jason de León, a 2024 National Book Award Winner for Nonfiction, and a 2017 MacArthur Foundation Fellow; Natalia Molina, a USC history professor and 2020 MacArthur Foundation Fellow; and Jesse Katz, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author. The discussion will be moderated by Gustavo Arellano, a Pulitzer Prize-winning L.A. Times columnist and author.
Another panel will feature fantasy and horror writers Olivie Blake, Chuck Tingle, Philip Fracassi, Sarah Langan, Liz Kerin and CJ Leede, moderated by author and Village Well bookseller Colin Hinckley.
Beyond Baroque will offer a conversation on Altadena’s history as a community for Black artists.
In addition to creative activities for all ages, there are several activities for kids, including Storytimes with/ Seth Fishman and Nell Cross Beckerman, collage-making with Shira Sergant, origami with Joel Stern, cardboard maker space with reDiscover Center, and kids yoga with Zooga Yoga.
Some exhibitors include literary organizations such as 826LA, What Books Press, Heavy Manners Library, Angel City Press, X Artists’ Press Books, and WriteOn!
There also will be booths exhibiting the work of local presses and several panels on various topics.
“This is the fourth book festival,” said Caspar, a lifelong lover of books, coffee, and third spaces.
“The Culver City Arts Foundation did the first one in 2019. They are still involved as lead sponsors. I contracted with them to run it now. Everyone in the partnership is helping. We hope to get a good crowd and that they get great things out of the festival.”
Caspar, a widowed mother of two, describes her establishment as a community-focused bookstore-café with a mission: to be a welcoming, comfortable community space where people can be inspired and find a connection.
For most of her adult life, she has been focused on developing communities, working for three decades in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles in affordable housing finance and development.
She said the book festival is an extension of the mission of Village Well Books & Coffee.
“It’s a privilege to put this on,” she said. “Our committee is very diverse. It’s a privilege to work alongside everybody. We’re all looking forward to this being a successful event.”
Darlene Donloe is a freelance reporter for Wave Newspapers who covers South Los Angeles. She can be reached at ddonloe@gmail.com.
