The University of Arizona Press
February 17, 2025
Bibliophiles rejoice: the 2025 Tucson Festival of Books is right around the corner! On March 15-16, find tent #244 on the University of Arizona campus where we’ll be selling books, hosting author signings, and connecting with the incredible Tucson community.
With authors from many genres presenting on panels and signing books at our tent this year, there will be something for everyone. All books will be 25% off during the festival, and we will once again have our ever-popular $5 book shelf.
Take a look at the schedule below to find out where and when you can meet University of Arizona Press authors, or view the complete Tucson Festival of Books schedule. We look forward to seeing you there!
Book Signing Schedule
Saturday, March 15
10:00-10:30 AM: Lisa Heidinger & Julie Morrison, authors of Arizona Friend Trips
11:00-11:30 AM: Alma Garcia & Edward Polanco, authors of All That Rises & Healing Like Our Ancestors
12:00-12:30 PM: Tim Hernandez & Gary Nabhan, authors of They Call You Back & The Nature of Desert Nature
1:00-1:30 PM: Amber McCrary & Denise Low, authors of Blue Corn Tongue & House of Grace, House of Blood
2:00-2:30 PM: Carlos G. Vélez-Ibáñez, author of The Rise of Necro/Narco Citizenship
3:00-3:30 PM: Octavio Quintanilla & Leo Romero, authors of Las Horas Imposibles / The Impossible Hours & Trees Dream of Water
Sunday, March 16
10:00-10:30 AM: Tom Zoellner & Melani Martinez, authors of Rim to River & The Molino
11:00-11:30 AM: Gregory McNamee, author of The University of Arizona: A History in 100 Stories
1:00-1:30 PM: Stephen Strom & Ted Fleming, authors of Forging a Sustainable Southwest & Birds, Bats, and Blooms
1:30-2:00 PM: David Levy, author of Star Gazers
2:00-3:00 PM: Paul Minnis & Linda Gregonis/Victoria Evans, authors of Reframing Paquimé & The Hohokam and Their World
Panel Schedule – Saturday, March 15
10:00 AM
| Title: | Entrelazados: Our Family Histories |
| Location: | Nuestras Raíces Stage |
| Date/Time: | Saturday, 10:00 am to 10:55 am |
| Panelists: | Tim Z. Hernandez, Melani Martinez, Rex Ogle |
| Moderator: | Mari Herreras |
| Genres: | Multigenre |
| Signing Area: | Pima County Public Library/Nuestras Raíces/Craft Tent & Signing Area |
| Description: | Three writers with roots in the Southwest discuss their recently published memoirs about family, history, identity and belonging, and the healing power of memory. |
| Title: | Fearless Forms |
| Location: | Student Union Kiva |
| Date/Time: | Saturday, 10:00 am to 10:55 am |
| Panelists: | Jose Hernandez Díaz, Amber McCrary, m.s. RedCherries |
| Moderator: | Estella Gonzalez |
| Genres: | Poetry |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Main Floor |
| Description: | How can poets challenge traditional boundaries of form, voice and structure to produce innovative writing? Through prose poetry, visual poetry, and other experimental techniques, three fearless poets discuss how they push the limits of craft. |
| Title: | Writing Animals |
| Location: | National Parks Experience Stage |
| Date/Time: | Saturday, 10:00 am to 10:55 am |
| Panelists: | Theodore Fleming, Leslie Patten, Mike Stark |
| Moderator: | John Koprowski |
| Genres: | Nature / Environment |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – National Parks |
| Description: | Animals have always been a source of fascination to their human counterparts. Whether revered, elusive, or reviled, members of the animal kingdom enrich our understanding of the world we live in. Join this group of authors in a lively discussion about animals and their roles in nature, culture, and history. |
11:30 AM
| Title: | Radical Hope in Memory and Myth |
| Location: | Student Union Kiva |
| Date/Time: | Saturday, 11:30 am – 12:25 pm |
| Panelists: | Rosa Alcalá, Perry Janes, Leo Romero |
| Moderator: | Wanda Alarcon |
| Genres: | Poetry |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Main Floor |
| Description: | In dark times, people look to poetry for hope and resilience. By mining their memories and transmuting the past into poetry, each of these panelists reveal how making sense of our personal and collective experiences can be a radical act of optimism, compassion, and generosity. |
1:00 PM
| Title: | Arizona Stories |
| Location: | Student Union Sabino |
| Date/Time: | Saturday, 1:00 pm to 1:55 pm |
| Panelists: | Gregory McNamee, Julie Morrison, Lisa Schnebly Heidinger |
| Moderator: | Andrew Brown |
| Genres: | History / Biography |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Tent |
| Description: | Explore the state’s most cherished places, from the Grand Canyon to our very own University of Arizona. Three friends will celebrate the stories and people that make these places special. |
| Title: | National Book Awards: Realities of Writing |
| Location: | UA Campus Store |
| Date/Time: | Saturday, 1:00 pm to 1:55 pm |
| Panelists: | Jason De León, Violet Duncan, Octavio Quintanilla, Ernest Scheyder |
| Moderator: | Ruth Dickey |
| Genres: | National Book Awards |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Lower Level |
| Description: | Join these 2024 National Book Award honorees to hear real-life inspirations behind their books, and how they polished ideas and fascinations into their final drafts. Moderated by Ruth Dickey, Executive Director of the National Book Foundation, this session is presented in partnership with the NBF. |
4:00 PM
| Title: | “Art Begins in a Wound” |
| Location: | Student Union Kiva |
| Date/Time: | Saturday, 4:00 pm – 4:55 pm |
| Panelists: | Denise Low, Octavio Quintanilla, Danez Smith |
| Moderator: | Aria Pahari |
| Genres: | Poetry |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Main Floor |
| Description: | Can poetry heal our personal and collective wounds? Confronting both historical and present forms of violence — colonialism, U.S. border policy, racism and more — each of these poets explores language as an urgent response to pain. |
| Title: | Border Near and Far |
| Location: | Nuestras Raíces Stage |
| Date/Time: | Saturday, 4:00 pm – 4:55 pm |
| Panelists: | Tim Z. Hernandez, Richard Parker, Cristina D. Ramirez |
| Moderators: | n/a |
| Genres: | Nuestras Raices |
| Signing Area: | Pima County Public Library/Nuestras Raíces/Craft Tent & Signing Area |
| Description: | While all three authors have roots in El Paso, Texas, a town familiar to anyone interested in the Borderlands, each author writes from a unique perspective, giving new light to the familiar. |
Panel Schedule – Sunday, March 16
11:30 AM
| Title: | Reshaping American Poetry |
| Location: | Student Union Kiva |
| Date/Time: | Sunday, 11:30 am – 12:25 pm |
| Panelists: | Jose Hernandez Díaz, Octavio Quintanilla, Danez Smith |
| Moderators: | Paola Valenzuela |
| Genres: | Poetry |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Main Floor |
| Description: | Poets explore themes of self, belonging, and resistance in relation to American identity. Through personal and cultural lenses, these authors redefine what it means to aspire, succeed, and struggle in contemporary America, reshaping complex stories of resilience and hope in the wake of the election. |
1:00 PM
| Title: | Sonic Constellations |
| Location: | Student Union Kiva |
| Date/Time: | Sunday, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm |
| Panelists: | Amber McCrary, Saretta Morgan, Leo Romero |
| Moderators: | Cameron Quan |
| Genres: | Poetry |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Main Floor |
| Description: | From arid deserts to storm-laden coastlines, each author delves into the musicality of language and the powerful role of landscape in poetry. Panelists will discuss how natural imagery and poetic techniques connect inner experience with the external world. |
2:30 PM
| Title: | Unexpected Legacy of History |
| Location: | Koffler Room 204 |
| Date/Time: | Sunday, 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm |
| Panelists: | Jason De León, Lee Hawkins, Tim Z. Hernandez |
| Moderators: | Jill Jorden Spitz |
| Genres: | Memoir / Essays / Creative Nonfiction |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Tent |
| Description: | How does a coyote leave the smuggling life? How do multiple generations cope with the legacy of slavery? How do migrant farm workers reclaim their names and their legacy? Our authors explore the very personal ripple effects of history’s weight. |
| Title: | Voicing the Archives |
| Location: | Student Union Kiva |
| Date/Time: | Sunday, 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm |
| Panelists: | Denise Low, Gabriel Palacios |
| Moderators: | Susan Briante |
| Genres: | Poetry |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Main Floor |
| Description: | Through archival sources, familial stories, and cultural legacies, these poets examine how the past informs the present. By giving voice to forgotten or hidden histories, panelists reveal the deep intersections of place, heritage, and personal narrative in contemporary poetry. |
| Title: | SW Books of the Year – Food and Memory |
| Location: | UA Library/Special Collections |
| Date/Time: | Sunday, 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm |
| Panelists: | Sydney Graves, Silvana Esparza, Melani Martinez |
| Moderators: | Gregory McNamee |
| Genres: | Memoir / Essays / Creative Nonfiction |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – Integrated Learning Center |
| Description: | Food is a thing of tradition, family, love, identity, and sometimes of resistance. In this panel, three noted students of food in all its aspects, come together to share their knowledge. Chef Silvana Salcido Esperza, Melani Martinez, and Kate Christensen, will talk about their adventures at table. |
4:00 PM
| Title: | The Starry Sky |
| Location: | Science City – Main Stage |
| Date/Time: | Sunday, 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm |
| Panelists: | David H. Levy |
| Moderators: | Gregory Leonard |
| Genres: | Science / Medicine / Technology |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – Science City |
| Description: | Join author, discoverer, and amateur astronomer David Levy as he shares personal anecdotes and experiences gathered over 60 years on the beauty and wonder he has found in stargazing, and his continued curiosity and awe of the night sky. |
| Title: | Remarkable Planet |
| Location: | Student Union Sabino |
| Date/Time: | Sunday, 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm |
| Panelists: | Theodore H. Fleming, Neil Shubin |
| Moderators: | Scott Saleska |
| Genres: | Science / Medicine / Technology |
| Signing Area: | Sales & Signing Area – UA Campus Store Tent |
| Description: | With infectious enthusiasm and endless curiosity, biologists help us understand the world around us. Author-scientists Neil Shubin and Ted Fleming will share stories from their work — and those who have inspired them — that help us understand our planet and ourselves. |
For the full festival schedule, click here.
