2026 Culver City Book Festival brings bright writers together

The sun shone over the Wende Museum courtyard on Sunday, March 29, as the annual Culver City Book Festival returned for a full day of activities. The event — put on by the local bookstore Village Well Books & Coffee — began at 10 a.m. and ran until 5 p.m., featuring a kids zone, panels throughout the day, and a wide variety of literature by local authors and publishers for viewing and purchase.

A wide array of genres and media were presented at the authors' and publishers' booths. While there was a separate area in the courtyard designated as a “Kids Zone” for many of the organized activities, creative outlets, including origami and other arts stations, were available for all to participate in.

Booths were also not limited to presenting books at the Festival. The Death Deck produces sets of cards that help those who use it explain and process their needs related to death, dementia, or end-of-life care. Another alternative media presence at the Culver City Book Festival came from the Center for the Study of Political Graphics (CSPG), which continuously archives its collection of around 90,000 different signs online.

While not offering anything for sale in person on Sunday, UCLA’s Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press also had a table at the Culver City Book Festival to show off their recent and upcoming publications. While the Institute's publications examine discoveries worldwide and their implications, both its most recent and upcoming publications focus on China. The former presents the results of an archaeological survey of the Chengdu Plain in southwestern China, while the latter uses archaeological evidence to examine economic trends in China during the age of Confucius (1000-250 BC).

Another publisher at the event affiliated with a larger entity is Angel City Press, under the purview of the Los Angeles Public Library. The publisher focuses on capturing the Los Angeles area and its history through visual media, and was donated to the Los Angeles Public Library in late 2023 by its co-founders.

There was also a wide selection of books for kids, including a series of graphic novels from publisher Oak Tree Comics. Founder Josh Oaktree’s goal for the publisher is to create eco-conscious comics, including one that imagines fictional creatures fused with endangered real animals.

Another set of books focused on educating the youngest among us was Kitty Felde's civics series. She spent 30 years as a political commentator on public radio before shifting her focus to a younger audience and now has a series of books that teach kids about political topics through protagonist Fina Mendoza and her dog, Senator Something.

The Asian American community was also represented by several faces at the Culver City Book Festival. Hosting a booth next to the Japanese Cultural Heritage Club at the Venice Japanese Community Center, publisher Kuro Uzu presented a modern retelling of a classic story — Unico. The original story about a unicorn blessed with the power to bring happiness to those around him was created by Osamu Tezuka, serialized as a Japanese shojo (fiction targeted at young adult females) in the late 70’s, and Tezuka’s estate played a part in getting this remake published.

Inspired by her own experience, author Christina Ishibashi presented her children’s story: Tricky Trichotillomania at the Culver City Book Festival. Trichotillomania is a mental health disorder categorized by an obsession with pulling out body hair, and Ishikawa wrote the story based on her own experience with the disorder, which she has since overcome.

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