Hear from Yssis Cano-Santiago, our 2024-25 Alan Andres Writer-in-Residence, about how the fellowship helped her complete her manuscript: https://bit.ly/4fevFei Applications for the 2026-27 Alan Andres Writer-in-Residence fellowship close on June 5, 2026, at 11:59 PM. www.writer-in-residence.org

Congratulations to our Alan Andres Writer-in-Residence alumni, @anniehartnett.bsky.social Annie Hartnett (2013-2014) and @rhondadechambeau.bsky.social Rhonda DeChambeau (2022-2023), for their novels being chosen for the 2026 Mass Book Awards Longlists! www.massbook.org/mass-book-aw...

In honor of Mother’s Day, pictured here is George Bellows’ tender 1916 lithograph Mother and Children ("June Again") from the BPL's Art Department. Captured are his wife Emma and their daughters Anne and Jean during a summer in Ogunquit, Maine.

There is just ONE MONTH left to apply for the Associates' Alan Andres Writing Fellowships! Deadline: June 5. 📚 Alan Andres Writer-in-Residence: https://ow.ly/wEfG50YV66I 📖 Alan Andres Picture Book Writer Fellowship: https://ow.ly/PEU250YV66K

Hear directly from our inaugural Alan Andres Picture Book Writer Fellow, Jessica Ruan, about the impact of this program. 🔗 Learn more and apply here: https://www.associatesbpl.org/events-and-programs/picture-book-writer-fellowship/

Please join us for the 8th annual Pierce Performance Series, We Hold These Truths. This evening of music and poetry is inspired by the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and will take place on Thursday, June 25, at the Central Library.

Thank you to everyone who supported the 36th Annual Literary Lights! Thanks to your generosity, the Associates of the Boston Public Library raised over half a million dollars to preserve and protect the Boston Public Library's Special Collections. 📸: Maria Alejandra Mata + Olivia Moon

Meet author and PEN Trustee Jennifer Finney Boylan, our presenter for Jodi Picoult for Literary Lights 2026.

Meet author and illustrator Brian Selznick, a former Literary Lights Honoree and presenter for our 2026 Keynote Author, Gregory Maguire.  The Associates of the BPL has limited tickets left for Literary Lights, THIS SUNDAY, April 26, 2026, at the Fairmont Copley 🎟️  https://ow.ly/F3Om50YOyaH

Meet Ocean Vuong, one of our honorees for Literary Lights 2026! Swipe for his full quote. GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY for the region’s premier literary event, Literary Lights, THIS SUNDAY, April 26, 2026, at the Fairmont Copley Plaza. Get tickets here 🎟️ https://ow.ly/WMT450YNWyN

The Associates of the Boston Public Library is excited to share that we have a select number of tickets available for Literary Lights, THIS SUNDAY, April 26, 2026, at the Fairmont Copley Plaza. Join us for New England's premiere literary event! https://ow.ly/QTRh50YMRqF

The Associates of the Boston Public Library is excited to share that we have a select number of tickets available for Literary Lights on April 26, 2026, at the Fairmont Copley Plaza. @jodipicoult.bsky.social Book tickets: https://ow.ly/ArpS50YKBlq

The Associates of the Boston Public Library is pleased to share that applications for our 2026-27 Alan Andres Writing Fellowships are now open!

Thank you to the @bplfund.bsky.social for inviting the Associates to the opening of the Boston Public Library’s newest exhibition, “Declarations: Printing a New Nation!”

The Associates of the Boston Public Library are proud to celebrate Betsy Groban, our board member and chair of the Alan Andres Writing Programs, on the upcoming publication of Pow for Pia, the second book in her early reader series about the plucky little Pia, on June 23.

"As a nonfiction writer, I was especially grateful for the treasure trove of research materials I could access. I'll forever treasure my year working in the BPL as one of those most inspiring times of my life as an author/illustrator. " - Katy Doughty, 2021–22 Alan Andres Writer-in-Residence

youtu.be/iqC2eSx0t7o?... We are incredibly excited to honor renowned author Gregory Maguire as our Keynote at the 36th Literary Lights!

Congratulations to our 2021-2022 Alan Andres Writer-in-Residence, Katy Doughty, for the publication of the graphic novel she wrote during her residency, How to Survive the End of the World.

As a part of their fellowships, the Alan Andres Writer-in-Residence and the Illustrated Children’s Book Fellow have the opportunity to host workshops at the Central Library. Zarlasht Niaz and Jessica Ruan hosted an Art & Poem Book Crafts Workshop at the Children’s Library on March 7! 🌈

✨ Meet the emcee for our 2025 Literary Lights Dinner, Jared Bowen! ✨ Jared Bowen is the Emmy award-winning Executive Arts Editor and host of The Culture Show, a daily radio program and podcast at GBH exploring the creative process.

"The Weary Blues” by Langston Hughes, presented by Regie Gibson, was the winner of the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926! ▶️ Check out the full program recording on our YouTube: https://youtu.be/mWTcyVZbiFo

Get to know Viv, the Associates-funded Boston Public Library Curator of Modern Books and Manuscripts, in our latest YouTube interview! ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TS5QDXf6x8

Missed the Hundred-Year Book Debate last week? You can now watch the full program on our YouTube Channel! Find out which book won the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926! 📚 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWTcyVZbiFo

Thank you to everyone who attended our Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926 last night! We hope you enjoy these photos from the engaging literary event. Missed it? Stay tuned for the full event recording coming soon on YouTube! Photos by: Z Weber

The Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926 is TONIGHT! 🎟️: https://ow.ly/qZkG50YbXSB Join us in the Boston Public Library Rabb Hall or on Zoom from 6-7 to see The Sun Also Rises, The Weary Blues, and Winnie-the-Pooh go head to head 📚

TOMORROW! The Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926 is almost here 📚 Join us in @bpl.boston.gov Rabb Hall or on Zoom from 6–7 PM as The Sun Also Rises, The Weary Blues, and Winnie-the-Pooh go head to head. 📰 Read this wonderful @bostonglobe.com feature on the debate: www.bostonglobe.com/2026/02/09/a...

Happening tomorrow night at the Boston Public Library! Join @associatesbpl.bsky.social in person or online and vote for your favorite. The event will be MC'd by the dazzling Kennedy Elsey from Mix 104.1. Don't miss it! Get your free tickets here: www.associatesbpl.org/events-and-p...

We’re thrilled to partner with bookstores to celebrate the centennial of the books in our Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926 on Feb 10!

Readers of Boston.com recently weighed in on which 1926 book still stands the test of time, with Winnie-the-Pooh narrowly edging out The Sun Also Rises. 🐻 Read the article here: www.boston.com/community/re...

Meet the moderator of the Hundred-Year Book Debate, Kennedy Elsey. Get free in-person or livestream tickets for this lighthearted literary debate on February 10 at the Central Library here: https://100year1926.eventbrite.com/?aff=bsky

The Associates of the Boston Public Library extends their gratitude to Peter King + Company for years of pro bono partnership. We are thankful for the time and creativity shared with us. Check out their great work at https://www.peterkingandcompany.com/

Meet the third debater of the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926, Jackie Horne, who will defend Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne.  Get free in-person or livestream tickets for this lighthearted literary debate on February 10 at the Central Library here: 100year1926.eventbrite.com?aff=bsky

Meet the second debater of the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926, Regie Gibson, who will defend The Weary Blues by Langston Hughes.  Get free in-person or livestream tickets for this lighthearted literary debate on February 10 at the Central Library here: 100year1926.eventbrite.com?aff=bsky

Meet the first debater of the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926, Hilary Justice, who will defend The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway. Get free in-person or livestream tickets for this lighthearted literary debate on February 10 at the Central Library here: 100year1926.eventbrite.com?aff=bsky

Had a blast talking with Jared Bowen today about the upcoming @associatesbpl.bsky.social Hundred-Year Book Debate! Join us @bpl.boston.gov on Feb. 10. More information here: www.associatesbpl.org/events-and-p...

Today, we honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., American civil rights activist and Baptist minister, who led the civil rights movement. This 1965 image from the BPL’s Boston Herald-Traveler Photo Collection is currently on display in the "Revolution!" Exhibition in the Central Library.

📚 Meet the third book of the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926: Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne. 📚 Milne drew inspiration from his son Christopher Robin’s stuffed toys and Winnie, the London Zoo bear adopted by Canadian WWI vet Harry Colebourn. Tickets: https://100year1926.eventbrite.com/?aff=bsky

📚 Meet the second book of the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926: The Weary Blues by Langston Hughes, presented by literary performer Regie Gibson. 📚

📚 Get to know the first book of the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926: The Sun Also Rises, presented by scholar and curator Dr. Hilary Justice. 📚

✨ Meet the Keynote Speaker for our 2026 Literary Lights Gala! ✨ The Associates of the Boston Public Library is excited to celebrate #1 New York Times bestselling author and champion of the BPL Special Collections, Gregory Maguire, at our upcoming 2026 Literary Lights Gala.

You're invited! Join us for the Hundred-Year Book Debate of 1926 on February 10, 2026, in person at the Central Library or on Zoom 📚

Happy New Year from the Associates of the Boston Public Library! 🥂 We wish you joy, inspiration, and a wonderful year ahead. The Associates is proud to support the preservation and promotion of the Special Collections, like this 1899 magazine poster from the BPL’s Art Department.

Thanks to Associates-funded Special Collections staff, a once little-known Anti-Slavery photo album is now cataloged and digitized, with new details about the Reconstruction era. Your gift ensures these histories are saved and shared. Donate at https://www.associatesbpl.org/donate/

Thanks to our generous donors, the Associates committed $1,216,521 to the BPL this year, including funding the salaries of ten essential Special Collections staff members like Conservation Officer Mary French, whose work preserves fragile materials for generations. https://ow.ly/MNwh50XNQKY

The Associates underwrites the salaries of 10 BPL staff members, including Rare Books & Manuscripts Cataloger Lucretia, who attended the 2025 New York Antiquarian Book Fair to identify acquisitions such as this rare 1979 Moby-Dick illustrated by Barry Moser. Learn more: https://ow.ly/mPzH50XNQFZ

Our Writer-in-Residence, Zarlasht Niaz, was featured in this wonderful WBUR article. As part of her residency, Zarlasht spends 19 hours each week at the Boston Public Library’s Copley Square location, so it’s no surprise that the Newsfeed Café is one of her go-to spots! ☕

The Associates of the Boston Public Library is pleased to announce the appointment of Amanda Doyle-Bouvier as its new Executive Director, effective January 5, 2026. Amanda brings extensive non-profit experience in development and communications at several highly respected area organizations.

Learn about the Associates of the Boston Public Library’s impact in our 2025 fiscal year—made possible thanks to the generosity of our supporters. Read our latest annual report here: https://ow.ly/YInF50XMyQv

Take a look at this stunning before-and-after transformation by the Associates-funded 2025 Conservation Intern. Carmen Gonzalez preserved the BPL’s rare 1847 edition of The Liberty Bell, an abolitionist giftbook created to raise funds for the anti-slavery cause.

How do you protect history from being erased? This display, created by Associates-funded Manager of Archives, Eve Neiger, and Archivist, Margaret Peachy, highlights the vital work of archivists in saving history. If you believe in this work, please donate: https://www.associatesbpl.org/donate/