Check It. LAT Festival of Books.

It was another beautiful weekend at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at UCLA. Somehow the weather always ends up being perfect on these two late April days, and it sets the mood for lots of bookish fun outdoors (and indoors at the panel sessions) in Westwood.

This was my first year participating as a non-LAT staffer, and it felt really good to be included. It was great to see the familiar faces of Steve Lopez, Patt Morrison, and Sue Horton in the green room. David Ulin, Nick Owchar, Carolyn Kellogg and web producer extraordinaire Mary Forgione all made this year's festival go better than ever.

I wrote about Bernadette Peters (pictured) and her children's book "Stella is a Star", a panel that included Warren Beatty biographer Peter Biskind, and a panel called "The Illusion of Being Ordinary" moderated by Susan Salter Reynolds that included Dylan Landis.

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: the BEAT

Advance Notice. Los Angeles Times Festival of Books.

The LA Times Festival of Books is one of those things in Los Angeles you plan your year around. Want to go out of town? Maybe later, the LA Times Festival of Books is next weekend.

This year, the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is scheduled to be April 24-25, and will be featuring over 400 celebrated authors, and tons of exhibitors, you can peruse the UCLA campus, maybe pick up a new book, and listen to your favorite author read and discuss their latest bestseller.

Tickets to panels are $1 through TicketMaster (not including the "nominal" TicketMaster fee), but participating Ritmo Latinos and Macy's will be giving away tickets for free. You can also pick up free panel tickets at the Beverly Center.

There's also the "Panel Pass," where for $30 you get first dibs on five panels and a poster.

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is scheduled to be held April 24-25, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday.

-- Lauren Williams