Day 1: Scenes from the Festival of Books

The USC Song Girls and the marching band perform Saturday at the festival, which continues Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

Kaitlyn Moreno and Santiago Celestino, both 7, perform on the Hoy stage during the festival. The students are with the after-school program called Woodcraft Rangers.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

Francisco Gomez performs with a mariachi band at the Hoy Stage on Saturday.  (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Erlinda Compton is photographed through a hole at the “Rubes Cartoons by Leigh Rubin” festival booth.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

People write on the “What Books Inspire Your Fire” wall during the festival.  (Bret Hartman / For The Times)

Stylist Rachel Zoe, right, shares fashion tips Saturday during her appearance with Amanda de Cadenet.  (Bret Hartman / For The Times)

Cristal Velazquez, left, and Marissa Rodriguez, both 15 years old, are reflected in a mirror at the festival.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

John Green, left, author of “The Fault in Our Stars,” speaks with David Ulin. Green drew fans who had lined up for hours to get into the session.   (Bret Hartman / For The Times)

Actor and “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton reads “Fiona’s Luck” to the crowd.  (Bret Hartman / For The Times)

Children listen to “Reading Rainbow Live” with host Levar Burton, who shared a story with young audience members and their parents.  (Bret Hartman / For The Times)

Jakobi Steiman, 5, poses with characters from “The Boxtrolls,” an upcoming movie based on the novel “Here Be Monsters!” by Alan Snow.  (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Scooby-Doo and the Carnival Creep amuse kids at the Children’s Stage.  (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

The West Angeles Church Girl Scout Troop (ages 6 to 14 years old) likes to read. The girls’ favorite titles? “I’m a Pretty Little Black Girl,” “The Fault in Our Stars,” “The Giver,” and “Because of Mr. Trupt.”   (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Puppets perform at the Book Soup bookstore booth at the festival.  (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Korean taco chef Roy Choi, who wrote the memoir “L.A. Son,” told festival-goers that attending the Culinary Institute of America was “like going to Hogwarts.”   (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Giada De Laurentiis, author of “Everyday Italian” and “Giada at Home,” also writes children’s books.  (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Author Anna Dewdney entertains children by reading from “Llama Red Pajama” on Saturday.  (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Alex Schmider, left and Abigail Followwill pose with the “Llama Llama Red Pajama” mascot.  (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Chef and restaurateur Suzanne Goin (A.O.C., Lucques and Tavern) gives a cooking lesson to festival-goers.  (Tom Politeo / Los Angeles Times)

Actress and author Marlo Thomas, who wrote “It Ain’t Over ... Till It’s Over,” spoke with Times columnist Patt Morrison on Saturday.  (Tom Politeo / For the Times)

Members of Trojan Bhangra perform Saturday at the USC Stage. The group is a student-run competitive dance team.  (Tom Politeo / For the Times)