One way The Friends invests in the library is by connecting readers and writers statewide through a range of programs. For more than 30 years, we have offered programs that entertain, enrich, and nourish curious minds.
Our events are always open to the public and most are free. Browse our calendar below.
Captioning is provided for our livestream events; ASL interpretation is available upon request with at least seven days’ notice. Contact [email protected] or 651-222-3242.
Full Calendar of Events
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36th Annual Minnesota Book Awards Ceremony 6:00 pm 36th Annual Minnesota Book Awards Ceremony @ Ordway Center for the Performing Arts May 7 @ 6:00 pm – 9:30 pm  Celebrate the state’s best books at the 36th annual Minnesota Book Awards Ceremony, sponsored by Education Minnesota. Readers, writers, and booklovers from across Minnesota are invited to gather and celebrate the stories of Minnesotans that… | ||||||
| Books & Bars: “When Women Were Dragons” by Kelly Barnhill 6:30 pm Books & Bars: “When Women Were Dragons” by Kelly Barnhill @ Sociable Cider Werks May 15 @ 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm  When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill Wednesday, May 15 6:30 p.m. Discussion Sociable Cider Werks 1500 Fillmore St Minneapolis This event is FREE and open to the public. — Alex Green is a young… | ||||||
| Moving Words: Writers Across Minnesota | Wadena 2:00 pm Moving Words: Writers Across Minnesota | Wadena @ Wadena City Library May 20 @ 2:00 pm  Moving Words: Author Discussion Monday, May 20 | 2:00 p.m. Wadena City Library | 210 1st St SW, Wadena MN 56482 Free | Registration not required Enjoy a lively discussion with three Minnesota authors: Janna… | Books & Bars: “When Women Were Dragons” by Kelly Barnhill 6:30 pm Books & Bars: “When Women Were Dragons” by Kelly Barnhill @ Urban Growler May 21 @ 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill Tuesday, May 21 6:30 p.m. Discussion – Author Kelly Barnhill will join in person! Urban Growler 2325 Endicott Street Saint Paul This event is FREE and open to… | |||||
| Songs for Our Fathers: A Series of Panel Discussions to Celebrate Fatherhood 6:00 pm Songs for Our Fathers: A Series of Panel Discussions to Celebrate Fatherhood @ Highland Park Library May 30 @ 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm SONGS FOR OUR FATHERS: A Series of Panel Discussions to Celebrate Fatherhood Event 1: In Praise of Single Fathers Thursday, May 30 | 6:00 p.m. Highland Park Library 1974 Ford Parkway, Saint Paul Join Nick… |
Ongoing Series
Books & Bars
With The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, moderator Jeff Kamin brings his unique take on a public book club show to our computer screen every first Wednesday of the month.
Even if you don’t like the featured book, he “guarantees a good time at our entertaining discussions.” All are welcome to try this moderated reinvention of the book club.
When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill
Wednesday, May 15
6:30 p.m. Discussion
Sociable Cider Werks
1500 Fillmore St
Minneapolis
This event is FREE and open to the public.
—
Alex Green is a young girl in a world much like ours, except for its most seminal event: the Mass Dragoning of 1955, when hundreds of thousands of ordinary wives and mothers sprouted wings, scales, and talons; left a trail of fiery destruction in their path; and took to the skies.
Forced into silence, Alex nevertheless must face the consequences of this astonishing event: a mother more protective than ever; an absentee father; the upsetting insistence that her aunt never even existed; and watching her beloved cousin Bea become dangerously obsessed with the forbidden.
—
With The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, moderator Jeff Kamin brings his unique take on a public book club show to Saint Paul. Even if you don’t like the featured book, he “guarantees a good time at our entertaining discussions.” All are welcome to try this moderated reinvention of the book club.
When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill
Tuesday, May 21
6:30 p.m. Discussion – Author Kelly Barnhill will join in person!
Urban Growler
2325 Endicott Street
Saint Paul
This event is FREE and open to the public.
—
Alex Green is a young girl in a world much like ours, except for its most seminal event: the Mass Dragoning of 1955, when hundreds of thousands of ordinary wives and mothers sprouted wings, scales, and talons; left a trail of fiery destruction in their path; and took to the skies.
Forced into silence, Alex nevertheless must face the consequences of this astonishing event: a mother more protective than ever; an absentee father; the upsetting insistence that her aunt never even existed; and watching her beloved cousin Bea become dangerously obsessed with the forbidden.
—
With The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, moderator Jeff Kamin brings his unique take on a public book club show to Saint Paul. Even if you don’t like the featured book, he “guarantees a good time at our entertaining discussions.” All are welcome to try this moderated reinvention of the book club.
Fitzgerald in Saint Paul
The Friends stewards F. Scott Fitzgerald’s legacy through programming that celebrates the life and literature of the revered author and inspires people to reflect on both his historical and contemporary significance. Learn more here.
Fireside Reading Series
Cozy up for four weeks of readings with great writers. Fireside Reading Series, in partnership with Saint Paul Public Library for 30 years, highlights some of Minnesota’s finest writers who have published new work. Events this season took place Wednesday evenings in January at 6:30 p.m. at Rondo Community Library and via Zoom.
Watch recordings of the 2024 events by clicking the links below.
January 10 | Nigar Alam, Under the Tamarind Tree
January 17 | Mona Power, A Council of Dolls
January 24 | Jody Lulich, In the Company of Grace
January 31 | Raymond Luczak, Far From Atlantis
Captioning will be provided for all four Zoom livestream events; ASL interpretation will be provided for the 1/31 event and is available upon request for the other events with at least seven days’ notice. Contact [email protected] or 651-222-3242.
These programs are made possible in part through an appropriation from the Minnesota State Legislature to The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library as the Minnesota Center for the Book.
Previous Seasons:
Watch the 2023 recordings here.
Watch the 2022 recordings.
Watch the full playlist of events from 2020.
Listen to podcasts from previous years.
Read Brave Saint Paul
Read Brave is Saint Paul's annual citywide book club hosted by Mayor Carter and Saint Paul Public Library. Read Brave taps into the power of books to bring residents together to read and talk bravely across generations about an issue critical to Saint Paul and its future. The 2024 Read Brave book pick is the young adult novel Man o’ War by Cory McCarthy.
Sign up for the Read Brave e-newsletters or visit the Library's Read Brave webpage to learn how to access books and events.
More Than a Single Story
More Than a Single Story is a series of panel discussions/public conversations where writers of color discuss issues of importance to them in their own voices and in their own words.
The 2024 Series is called "Songs for Our Fathers: A Series to Celebrate Fatherhood" This series of three panel discussions and three writing workshops will invite participants to explore different aspects of fatherhood. Click on an event below to learn more.
Panel Discussions
Event 1: In Praise of Single Fathers
Event 2: The Unsung Realities of Fatherhood
Event 3: For the Love of Our Grandfathers
Workshops
Workshop 1: Unpacking “Single” Fatherhood
Workshop 2: The Unsung Realities of Modern Fatherhood
Workshop 3: Father and Son
SONGS FOR OUR FATHERS: A Series of Panel Discussions to Celebrate Fatherhood
Event 1: In Praise of Single Fathers
Thursday, May 30 | 6:00 p.m.
Highland Park Library
1974 Ford Parkway, Saint Paul
Join Nick Metcalf, Bao Phi, Davu Seru and Clarence White as they explore what it means to be in a masculine-perceived body and to raise children without the other birth parent present. What structural, physical, and emotional challenges do we face raising kids as “solo” fathers? Where have we found resilience and capacity to dream into our visions for caregiving, rather than collapsing into conventional norms?
Moderator: Ben Weaver.
These events are part of More Than a Single Story: Our Stories Our Selves.
Explore the full series:
Panel Discussions
Event 2: The Unsung Realities of Fatherhood
Event 3: For the Love of Our Grandfathers
Workshops
Workshop 1: Unpacking “Single” Fatherhood
Workshop 2: The Unsung Realities of Modern Fatherhood
Workshop 3: Father and Son
SONGS FOR OUR FATHERS: A Series of Writing Workshops to Celebrate Fatherhood
Workshop 1: Unpacking “Single” Fatherhood
Saturday, June 1 | 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Highland Park Library
1974 Ford Parkway, Saint Paul
Important pieces of our unique parenting stories are overlooked when the title “single father” is employed. In this outdoor workshop, we will explore a fuller picture of who we are as fathers raising children without the other birth parent present in the home. Writing allows us to dream deeper into who we are and who we are becoming. Anyone of any gender, age, or background who identifies as a father is invited to join us for this experience.
About the instructor: Ben Weaver is a father, caregiver, songwriter, poet and hide tanner, who travels by bicycle. He uses music and poetry to strengthen relationships and culture between human and non-human entities. He has released nine studio albums of music and five books of poetry. Given the choice he will side with the animals, lakes, rivers and trees. Relationship is the repair.
These events are part of More Than a Single Story: Our Stories Our Selves.
Explore the full series:
Panel Discussions
Event 1: In Praise of Single Fathers
Event 2: The Unsung Realities of Fatherhood
Event 3: For the Love of Our Grandfathers
Workshops
Workshop 2: The Unsung Realities of Modern Fatherhood
Workshop 3: Father and Son
SONGS FOR OUR FATHERS: A Series of Panel Discussions to Celebrate Fatherhood
Event 2: The Unsung Realities of Fatherhood
Thursday, June 6 | 6:00 p.m.
Highland Park Library
1974 Ford Parkway, Saint Paul
Join Erik Anderson, Jonathan Brown, Linus Chan, Chris Martin and Michael Torres, for an insightful conversation on the joys and complexities of fatherhood. Though they come from a variety of backgrounds—some were raised by present fathers, others by father figures or maternal influences—they are united in navigating the complexities of fatherhood in today’s world. Moderator: Suleiman Adan
These events are part of More Than a Single Story: Our Stories Our Selves.
Explore the full series:
Panel Discussions
Event 1: In Praise of Single Fathers
Event 3: For the Love of Our Grandfathers
Workshops
Workshop 1: Unpacking “Single” Fatherhood
Workshop 2: The Unsung Realities of Modern Fatherhood
Workshop 3: Father and Son