These 10 Must-Read Books Were Recommended By Actual Readers At The LA Times Festival, And Now I'm Adding Them All To My Cart

I attended the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books connected April 26 and 27, wherever I talked to attendees, authors, and vendors astir their favourite books and authors. Their picks span crossed genres — from phantasy to memoir, and classical lit to vampires — offering a divers scope of tastes. Keep speechmaking to spot what they chose, and besides however to enactment their enactment and tiny businesses!

2. Author E.J. Tanda picked Twilight by Stephanie Meyer, a publication and movie bid that is truthful wildly fashionable and beloved, it needs nary introduction. However, it was truthful overmuch much than a vampiric romantasy caller to her — it was the communicative that inspired her to go a writer.

3. Jennifer Mayes picked the ever-popular Fourth Wing, the archetypal publication of The Empyrean Series, by Rebecca Yarros. If you haven't heard of this romantasy caller that has spawned millions of dragon-loving ace fans worldwide, we highly urge you springiness it a work (if dragons, battles, fantasy, spicy emotion scenes, and redeeming the satellite from evil forces is your thing, that is).

4. Author Maurice Hicks picked (with implicit assurance and zero hesitation, I mightiness add) Finding Me by Viola Davis — a memoir astir the dynamo histrion and EGOT winner. (Honestly, is determination thing she can't do?) Like Maurice, galore readers recovered her communicative inspiring and captivating — and I would expect thing less.

5. Author Will Sterling picked the timeless classical Frankenstein by Mary Shelley — the oldest publication (first published successful 1818!) connected this list. This gothic fearfulness communicative astir a huffy idiosyncratic and the monster helium creates is truthful influential that adjacent if you haven't work it (and it's astir apt clip you did, tbh), you tin instantly representation Frankenstein's iconic monster and adjacent bargain his likeness astatine a Spirit Halloween store travel October.

6. Author Justin Kurian picked The Age of Innocence, the Pulitzer Prize-winning caller by Edith Wharton. This communicative is an enduring classical for a crushed — I'm talkin' love, I'm talkin' opulence, I'm talkin' turmoil, I'm talkin' 19th-century New York precocious society. If you haven't work this treasured portion of lit by now, past instrumentality this arsenic a motion to adhd it to your TBR database ASAP.

7. Marsha Rivera picked The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz. This best-selling, Oprah-lauded publication continues to beryllium referenced, recommended, and revisited, adjacent present — 28 years aft publication. There is nary shortage of reviews mentioning the affirmative impact and change it has brought to people's lives. Who knows, possibly it'll beryllium the soothing salve your psyche needs close now.

8. Author and psychotherapist Dr. Stacey Simmons picked When God Was A Woman by Merlin Stone, a publication that explores matriarchal past done myths, past goddesses, theology, archeological data, and beyond. Though it was published successful the '70s, galore readers – similar Stacey — inactive find its teachings applicable today.

9. Halley Parry and Jack Helton, who rang up my commemorative (and quintessential Festival of Books souvenir) tote container astatine the Skylight Books booth, simultaneously picked Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin successful a singular infinitesimal of bibliophilic synchronicity.

10. Noah Bleich (yes, helium is so dressed similar a teapot) picked Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari. Don't fto the connection "history" fool you, though — this highly-reviewed enactment of non-fiction is thing but boring, and volition support you engaged and turning pages faster than you tin accidental "sesquipedalian."

11. And arsenic a bonus round, Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi, chosen by ya miss – aka me. After 2 days of asking radical astir books that moved them, I, a self-proclaimed bookworm, wanted to beryllium included, too. I changed my prime respective times passim the play (The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King and Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan were besides contenders), but yet landed connected this caller due to the fact that of however overmuch it deepened my empathy and lingered successful my caput for weeks aft finishing it.

What publication would you recommend? Let america cognize successful the comments!

The reviews for this station person been edited for magnitude and clarity.