Calendar of Events
Priyanka Kumar with Laura Paskus
The Grassland Queen: An Avian Love Story in the American Plains
A naturalist’s lyrical journey into the world of an endangered community of birds and the vanishing grasslands that sustain them
Fireside Chat: An Evening with Lesley Poling-Kempes
Join us on November 12 at 5:30 p.m. at the New Mexico Museum of Art’s Plaza/Palace location for an evening with author Lesley Poling-Kempes, who will discuss her book Ladies of the Canyon: A League of Extraordinary Women & Their Adventures in the American Southwest.
Inspired by the exhibition Paul Burlin: An American Modernist in the Southwest, the conversation will explore the remarkable life of Natalie Curtis and the extraordinary network of women, artists, writers, and cultural figures who shaped the artistic and intellectual life of the Southwest. Ladies of the Canyon offers a deeper look at this fascinating history and the women whose lives and work helped define an important era in the cultural landscape of Santa Fe and beyond.
Pull up around the “fire”place in the MOA Plaza lobby with your copy of Ladies of the Canyon, or, buy a copy from Rosalie D. and Steven J. Harris gift shop before we start. We encourage people to read Ladies of the Canyon to prepare for our “chat”.
Notes
Please note: all discounted tickets REQUIRE that customer present valid ID
Book Discussion THE WAGER La Farge Library
Join us for a 90-minute group discussion of David Grann's "The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder" in recognition of the 285th anniversary of most of the survivors washing up on the Brazilian shore. Free copies of the book are thanks to the Santa Fe International Literary Festival!
Book Discussion The Wager South Side Library
Join us for a 90-minute group discussion of David Grann's "The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder" in recognition of the 285th anniversary of most of the survivors washing up on the Brazilian shore. Free copies of the book are thanks to the Santa Fe International Literary Festival!
Book Launch for Resolana: An New Mexico Family’s Memoir of Place with Adelma Aurora
Resolana captures the transformative journey of countercultural homesteaders drawn to northern New Mexico during the 1970s and stresses the value of community, resilience, reciprocity, and stewardship of the land.
In northern New Mexico, la resolana is “the place where the sun shines”—the warm, south-facing side of a home where people gather and stories are shared. In this intimate, multigenerational memoir, Adelma Aurora returns to her family’s ranch on Mesa Poleo to understand the history that binds her family to the land.
Drawing on journals, letters, and essays spanning more than five decades, Adelma Aurora braids her voice with those of her back-to-the-land homesteader parents, her brother, and her sons to trace three generations shaped by the land of Arroyo del Agua. From idealistic hippie beginnings and communal living to heartbreak, displacement, and return, Resolana follows a family tested by tragedy yet sustained by place.
At its heart, Adelma Aurora’s story is one of family history and land-based wisdom and of neighbors who teach survival and reciprocity, of water shared and work exchanged, of roots planted deeply in New Mexico soil. As Adelma Aurora inherits the ranch and tends it with her own children, she discovers that home is a living inheritance of kinship, memory, and care, not simply a place.
Resolana is a moving meditation on belonging and the enduring power of place to hold family together across generations.
Book Launch for RESOLANA: An New Mexico Family’s Memoir of Place with Adelma Aurora
Resolana captures the transformative journey of countercultural homesteaders drawn to northern New Mexico during the 1970s and stresses the value of community, resilience, reciprocity, and stewardship of the land.
In northern New Mexico, la resolana is “the place where the sun shines”—the warm, south-facing side of a home where people gather and stories are shared. In this intimate, multigenerational memoir, Adelma Aurora returns to her family’s ranch on Mesa Poleo to understand the history that binds her family to the land.
Drawing on journals, letters, and essays spanning more than five decades, Adelma Aurora braids her voice with those of her back-to-the-land homesteader parents, her brother, and her sons to trace three generations shaped by the land of Arroyo del Agua. From idealistic hippie beginnings and communal living to heartbreak, displacement, and return, Resolana follows a family tested by tragedy yet sustained by place.
At its heart, Adelma Aurora’s story is one of family history and land-based wisdom and of neighbors who teach survival and reciprocity, of water shared and work exchanged, of roots planted deeply in New Mexico soil. As Adelma Aurora inherits the ranch and tends it with her own children, she discovers that home is a living inheritance of kinship, memory, and care, not simply a place.
Resolana is a moving meditation on belonging and the enduring power of place to hold family together across generations.
Priyanka Kumar at Collected Works
Priyanka Kumar, Grassland Queen: An Avian Love Story in the American Plains
A naturalist's lyrical journey into the world of an endangered community of birds and the vanishing grasslands that sustain them. Priyanka will be in conversation with Dan Flores, a historian who specializes in cultural and environmental studies of the American West.
Celebrating Rudolfo Anaya in Santa Rosa
We are proud to partner with New Mexico Rural Library Initiative (NMRLI) and Moise Memorial Library, in Santa Rosa, for a celebration of the life and legacy of Rudolfo Anaya. The event will feature several readings of Anaya’s work by local authors and SFILF’s donation of more than 100 Anaya books to the library and NMRLI. The prominent and beloved Chicano author had deep ties to Santa Rosa and Puerto de Luna, New Mexico. A longtime patron of the Moise Memorial Library, Anaya described the impact that access to books had on him as a young person: “A library is also a place where love begins.” The author’s desk, typewriter, and other personal items are on permanent display in this library.
New Mexico Library Association (NMLA) Conference
SFILF will have a booth at the New Mexico Library Association (NMLA) conference. If you’re near Las Cruces and the Convention Center, please stop by!
Community Book Event
Join us for a community book event with author and peace builder Aziz Abu Sarah—moderated by Ambassador Deborah Jones—about his critically acclaimed book The Future Is Peace, which explores how shared grief can become a foundation for dialogue and healing rather than hatred. Presented by Tomorrow’s Women, in partnership with Collected Works Bookstore, Global Santa Fe, and the Santa Fe Public Library.
2027 Author Announcement
Join us for a free community reception at TOKo Santa Fe, where we will announce the full 2027 lineup before it is released to the press. We will also answer any questions you might have about the 2027 Festival.
Hampton Sides
Join us at the Lensic Performing Arts Center for An Evening with Hampton Sides, presented in association with Collected Works, as we celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the publication of his Kit Carson historical epic Blood and Thunder.
“Santa Fe Reads” at St. John's College
We look forward to celebrating Banned Books Week with St. John’s College. SJC is inviting every high school student in the Santa Fe area to choose a classic paperback to take home for free during Santa Fe Reads, a community celebration of books, ideas, and intellectual curiosity taking place at the BookMark, on the SJC campus. The weekend will also place special emphasis on one of New Mexico’s most celebrated—and frequently challenged—works of literature: Rudolfo Anaya’s Bless Me, Ultima. On October 3 at 4:00 p.m., SJC will host a community tribute to Anaya and his landmark novel, featuring SJC President J. Walter Sterling; author, editor, and SFILF co-founder Carmella Padilla, who wrote the afterword to the latest edition of Bless Me, Ultima; broadcast journalist and content creator Jeremy Jojola; and New Mexico elected officials and community leaders. 1160 Camino De Cruz Blanca, Santa Fe.
A Word with Writers: Andrew Sean Greer in Conversation with Emily Zipps
A Word with Writers: Andrew Sean Greer in Conversation with Emily Zipps
School For Advanced Research Literary Days
In collaboration with the Santa Fe International Literary Festival, SAR presents two literary days. Walk where writers once walked and hear their words on a guided literary tour. Listen to readings by emerging writers from the Institute of American Indian Arts Creative Writing program.
Speaker Series: A Book Talk in the Garden
In collaboration with the Santa Fe International Literary Festival, join us for an exclusive experience at Santa Fe Botanical Garden with nationally acclaimed author and naturalist Priyanka Kumar. We will bring together literature, nature, and conversation in one of Santa Fe’s most beautiful settings.
A Wonder Walk
Commonweal Conservancy is hosting an intimate gathering of Santa Fe Literary Festival participants with the goal of strengthening and deepening our individual and collective appreciation of northern New Mexico’s unique high-desert environment. During our wonder walk with Rebecca, we’ll take time to slow down, breathe deeply, and immerse ourselves in the beauty and spirit of one of Santa Fe’s most scenic, historic, and beloved wildland resources.
Writing on the Rails
In partnership with the Santa Fe International Literary Festival, join us for the second annual Writing on the Rails on the evening of Thursday, May 14. Last year’s event was a sold-out hit, and this year promises to be just as amazing. This year’s mini writing retreat will be co-hosted by Albuquerque’s inaugural poet laureate, Hakim Bellamy, and Logan Phillips, a poet and cultural worker based in Tucson, Arizona, fresh off the release of his new book, Reckon.
Free Community Event: Scott Simon in Conversation with Hampton Sides and Anne Goodwin Sides
Meet the beloved host of NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday as he discusses his new release, Ulysses S. Cat and Other Animals I Have Known
Free Community Event: Rick Barot and Laura Paskus in Conversation with Jill O’Bryan
Join artist Jill O’Bryan in conversation with poet Rick Barot and author Laura Paskus about the unique ways in which art, nature, and poetry intersect
Free Community Event: Alison Bechdel Reception
Meet the award-winning graphic novelist while touring Robert Giard’s exhibition Particular Voices: Portraits of LGBTQ+ Writers & Artists, 1985–2002
DH Lawrence in Taos with Garrett Peck
This full-day excursion, led in conjunction with the Santa Fe International Literary Festival, explores the Lawrences’ time in Taos. Led by author, historian, and tour guide Garrett Peck, we visit the Mabel Dodge Luhan House, the D. H. Lawrence Ranch, and more. A picnic lunch is included.
Film Series: No Straight Lines
Influenced by Alison Bechdel, No Straight Lines highlights how personal storytelling can expand visibility, identity, and cultural understanding
Film Series: Groundhog Day
The imaginative original story by Danny Rubin and screenplay he co-wrote with Harold Ramis uses humor to explore meaning, choice, and personal evolution
Film Series: Woman Walks Ahead
Featuring the actress DezBaa', Woman Walks Ahead depicts a determined artist who travels west and forms an unexpected connection with Lakota leader Sitting Bull
Free Community Event: Library Stories: Books on the Backroads
Special film screening to celebrate National Library Week 2026, followed by Q&A with film directors Mary Lance and Ben Daitz, along with Aspen Coriz-Romero and Shel Neymark of the New Mexico Rural Library Initiative.
Film Series: Border South
Grounded in the work of Jason De León, Border South shifts the lens from politics to people—and the universal search for safety and belonging
Film Series: Are you There God, It’s Me Margaret
Rooted in the fearless honesty of Judy Blume, the film captures the tender chaos of growing up while navigating friendship and identity
Erik Larson in Conversation with Hampton Sides
Erik Larson in Conversation with Hampton Sides