Book lovers, authors gather downtown Chicago for Printers Row Lit Fest

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Book lovers took over the streets of downtown Chicago Saturday for the start of Printers Row Lit Fest, the largest and oldest literary festival in the nation.

People had the chance to find a new book at a plethora of different stands and meet with hundreds of authors.

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This year is the 40th anniversary of the festival.

Seven Pulitzer Prize-winning authors were also at the festival, along with New York Times and USA Today best-selling authors.

Parul Bhandari was one author showcasing her books for the first time at Lit Fest this weekend. She told ABC7 she writes American-born stories on South Asian culture.

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Discussions on topics, including book-banning, race, sexual identity, politics and more, were also at the forefront of the festival.

The free festival runs again Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.