Chicago's Printers Row Lit Fest marks 40 years
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Printers Row Lit Fest in 2024. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios
While food lovers gobble up local treats at Taste of Chicago this weekend in Grant Park, book lovers will be devouring literary talks a few blocks west in Printers Row.
The big picture: The 40th annual Printers Row Lit Fest returns Saturday and Sunday with 250 authors and presenters, including Chicago-native and "House on Mango Street" author Sandra Cisneros, who won this year's Harold Washington Literary Award.
Here are some highlights by genre:
Kids: Check out a storybook parade featuring the Chicago Public Library's Great Horned Owl, musicians, dancers and authors at 10am Saturday.
History: Pulitzer Prize-winners Bill Healy and Mary Schmich will discuss their podcast "Division Street," connecting the repercussions from events in the 1960s to today. 3pm Saturday.
- Plus: Edda Fields-Black will discuss her new book, "COMBEE: Harriet Tubman the Combahee River Raid and Black Freedom during the Civil War," which won the 2025 Pulitzer Prize, with Jonathan Eig at 2pm Saturday.
Food: Ever chef Curtis Duffy and food author Laurie Woolever discuss their memoirs "Fireproof" and "Care and Feeding" with Monica at 2pm Saturday.
Political: Columnist Maureen Dowd talks politics and her latest book, "Notorious: Portraits of Stars from Hollywood, Culture, Fashion, and Tech," with David Axelrod at 1pm Saturday.
Poetry: Illinois Poet Laureate Mark Turcotte is joined by friends, including Stuart Dybek, Simone Meunch and Reginald Gibbons, in a program moderated by Billy Lombardo at 1:30pm Saturday.
Sports: Chicago author Don Zminda will discuss his book "Justice Batted Last: Ernie Banks, Minnie Minoso and the Unheralded Players Who Integrated Chicago's Major League Teams" with South Side writer Evan Moore at 1pm Saturday.
Find a full schedule here.