At Just Buffalo, we believe…

Name: BABEL: Hernan Diaz
Start: 2025-11-20
End: 2025-11-20
Location: Kleinhans Music Hall

…in the love of reading, the art of writing, and the power of the literary arts to transform individual lives and communities. For fifty years, we’ve brought the world’s greatest writers to Buffalo, hosted poetry events and readings, and supported the development of young writers.

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BABEL: Colm Tóibín, October 16, 2025 at Kleinhans Music Hall. (Photo by Pat Cray)

Literary Events in Buffalo

Check out upcoming literary events from Just Buffalo's own acclaimed series to other happenings around town.

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The 2025–2026 BABEL Season is HAPPENING!

ON SALE NOW! Don’t miss the incredible authors coming to Kleinhans Music Hall this year—and don’t forget about our local book discussion groups and other BABEL-related community events. (What is BABEL? Read all about it.)

Thursday, November 20, 2025

7:30 pm

Kleinhans Music Hall

BABEL: Hernan Diaz

Pulitzer Prize winner Hernan Diaz takes the stage to discuss Trust, the bestselling novel Barack Obama called one of his favorites. Diaz blends history, mystery, and money into an electrifying exploration of power and truth. Soon to be an HBO series.

Come be inspired by this acclaimed writer & thinker.

3 Symphony Circle, Buffalo, NY 14201

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Thursday, March 26, 2026

7:30 pm

Kleinhans Music Hall

BABEL: Tara Westover

Tara Westover’s memoir Educated—a #1 New York Times bestseller for over two years—has transfixed readers with its unforgettable story of self-invention. Born to survivalists in rural Idaho, Westover didn’t set foot in a classroom until she was 17 but went on to earn a PhD from Cambridge University and wow the world.

Come be inspired by her story of resilience and the power of learning to rewrite your own script.

3 Symphony Circle, Buffalo, NY 14201

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Thursday, April 23, 2026

7:30 pm

Kleinhans Music Hall

BABEL: Imani Perry

MacArthur genius and National Book Award winner Imani Perry unveils her new book, Black in Blues: How a Color Tells the Story of My People. Blending history, art, and personal reflection, Perry illuminates the forces that have shaped American life and the Black imagination through the color blue—from indigo cloth to blues music.

Join us for a revelatory evening with one of today’s most powerful thinkers and poetic voices.

3 Symphony Circle, Buffalo, NY 14201

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No event found!

Become a BABEL Sponsor

Just Buffalo’s BABEL series reaches a dynamic cross-section of our community—breaking social, economic, cultural, and geographic boundaries to bring people of all walks of life together to celebrate the power of the written word.

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We are located at 468 Washington Street in Downtown Buffalo, NY.

JBWC Creative Writing Programs

Check out what’s coming up at the Just Buffalo Writing Center, including writing workshops, book clubs, and more.

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Wednesday, December 3, 2025

6:30 pm - 8:00 pm

Just Buffalo Literary Center

Open Hours

OPEN HOURS provides a dedicated time and place for you to focus on your writing. Create new work and take creative risks. Get inspired by the library at Just Buffalo, and discuss your reading and writing practices with other writers in one of Buffalo's most beautiful downtown locations.

468 Washington Street, 2nd Floor, Buffalo, NY 14203

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Thursday, December 4, 2025

5:00 pm - 6:30 pm

Online via Zoom

Teachers ARE Writers_Aberg-Riger_12042025

Teachers ARE Writers with Ariel Aberg-Riger

In this creative writing workshop we will provide space for school teachers and educators to explore their own creative work and writing practice, with space for discussion and exploration.

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Thursday, December 11, 2025

5:00 pm - 6:30 pm

Online via Zoom

Teachers ARE Writers with Sandra Simonds

In this creative writing workshop we will provide space for school teachers and educators to explore their own creative work and writing practice, with space for discussion and exploration.

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No event found!

In-School Creative Writing Programs & Field Trips

One of Just Buffalo’s greatest strengths is our ability to reach students of all ages and abilities—gifted and talented, at-risk, or special needs—and we’re proud to work with public, private, Catholic, and charter schools, as well as community centers throughout Western New York.

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comic chapbooks photo credit Noah Falck 500x500

Mullen Elementary students field trip 2024

CLRI summer camp Our Story Scholars 2024 photo credit Pat Cray

Experience the literary arts firsthand with a field trip to the Just Buffalo Writing Center.

The JBWC welcomes schools, educators, organizations, and groups for a custom-designed experience that encourages creative expression and strengthens writing skills for learners of all ages & abilities.

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Typewriter-Graphic design by Julian Montague

Just WHAT is the JBWC?

The Just Buffalo Writing Center (JBWC) is a vibrant creative hub where readers & writers of all ages can come together around the love of books & the written word.

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Sidney Clifton speaking at the unveiling of the Spirit of Inspiration sculpture in honor of her mother, Lucille Clifton, in June 2023 at the Central Library Reading Park in Downtown Buffalo, NY.

Support Just Buffalo

At Just Buffalo, we believe that books change lives, reading builds community, and creative writing unlocks the imagination. Your support is critical to Just Buffalo—because words matter.

Ways to Give

Just Buffalo is a registered 501-c-3 non-profit organization, and your donation is tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

Brandon Lopez Fred Moten performing at the 06152024 Silo City Reading photo credit Pat Cray 500x500

Become a Monthly Donor!

Because every word counts. All year long, Just Buffalo strives to inspire readers, writers, and critical thinkers of all ages. Stories are shared, voices are lifted, and literature continues to be a force for connection & understanding.

Monthly donors make that work possible! Your generosity provides the steady, sustaining support needed to ensure Just Buffalo remains vibrant & accessible to all. It is one of the simplest and most meaningful ways to give.

Make a Donation

Event Space Rental

Located in the heart of downtown Buffalo, our beautifully renovated space is available for private rental to host writing workshops, author events, poetry readings, professional development retreats, book launches, and more.

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Annette Taylor Daniels performing outside of Just Buffalo Literary Center as part of Words On The Street, October 2018. (Photo by Noah Falck)