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Book Portals and Journeys of Literary Magic with Kate Quinn

New York Times Bestselling Author

2026-03-12 19:00:00 2026-03-12 20:00:00 America/New_York Book Portals and Journeys of Literary Magic with Kate Quinn Join us for a virtual conversation with acclaimed author Kate Quinn about her latest fantastical work, The Astral Library. Virtual - Virtual

Thursday, March 12
7:00pm - 8:00pm

Add to Calendar 2026-03-12 19:00:00 2026-03-12 20:00:00 America/New_York Book Portals and Journeys of Literary Magic with Kate Quinn Join us for a virtual conversation with acclaimed author Kate Quinn about her latest fantastical work, The Astral Library. Virtual - Virtual

Virtual

Virtual

Join us for a virtual conversation with acclaimed author Kate Quinn about her latest fantastical work, The Astral Library.

Welcome to the Astral Library, where books are not just objects, but doors to new worlds, new lives, and new futures.

Alexandria “Alix” Watson has learned one lesson from her barren childhood in the foster-care system: unlike people, books will never let you down. Working three dead-end jobs to make ends meet and knowing college is a pipe dream, Alix takes nightly refuge in the high-vaulted reading room at the Boston Public Library, escaping into her favorite fantasy novels and dreaming of far-off lands. Until the day she stumbles through a hidden door and meets the Librarian: the ageless, acerbic guardian of a hidden library where the desperate and the lost escape to new lives...inside their favorite books.

The Librarian takes a dazzled Alix under her wing, but before she can escape into the pages of her new life, a shadowy enemy emerges to threaten everyone the Astral Library has ever helped protect. Aided by a dashing costume-shop owner, Alix and the Librarian flee through the Regency drawing rooms of Jane Austen to the back alleys of Sherlock Holmes and the champagne-soaked parties of The Great Gatsby as danger draws inexorably closer. But who does their enemy really wish to destroy—Alix, the Librarian, or the Library itself?

Register now to hear more about The Astral Library, crafted for all bookworms and lovers of literature. 

About the Author: Kate Quinn is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of historical fiction. A native of Southern California, she attended Boston University, where she earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in classical voice. A lifelong history buff, she has written four novels in the Empress of Rome Saga and two books set in the Italian Renaissance before turning to the 20th century with The Alice Network, The Huntress, The Rose Code, The Diamond Eye, and The Briar Club. The Astral Library is her first foray into magic realism. She and her husband now live in Maryland with their rescue dogs.

This program is sponsored by the Alexandria Library Foundation.

Register for upcoming book talks and stream previously broadcast book talks here.

AGE GROUP: | Seniors | Adults |

EVENT TYPE: | Special Event | Author Talks |

TAGS: | |

Virtual


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Mon, Feb 16 9:00AM to 8:00PM
Tue, Feb 17 9:00AM to 8:00PM
Wed, Feb 18 9:00AM to 8:00PM
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Fri, Feb 20 9:00AM to 5:00PM
Sat, Feb 21 9:00AM to 5:00PM
Sun, Feb 22 9:00AM to 5:00PM

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Upcoming Events

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Tue, Feb 24, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
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Tom D. Crouch, a Smithsonian veteran of almost 45 years, paints a robust picture of a unique American establishment and its lasting legacies in his book Smithson’s Gamble.Register

Wed, Feb 25, 7:00pm - 8:00pm
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Do you love to read romance novels? Want to talk about them with other romance enthusiasts? Join us on the last Wednesday of the month! Click on the event title for more details. Register

Tue, Mar 03, 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Attention all handcrafters! Join us to share what you are working on, see what others are creating, and just chat while we craft together!Register

Wed, Mar 04, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
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Join us in conversation with bestselling author and humorist Michael Perry, whose collection of genre-spanning works encapsulates the experiences–and magic–of the everyday people in rural towns. Register

Thu, Mar 05, 7:00pm - 8:00pm
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Celebrate Women's History Month by joining us for an online discussion of these powerful stories: "Recitatif" by Toni Morrison and "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin. Register

Mon, Mar 09, 7:00pm - 8:30pm
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Join us online for a discussion of Elin Hilderbrand's 2019 historical novel featuring four siblings who experience the drama, intrigue, and upheaval of the '60s summer when everything changed.

Wed, Mar 11, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
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Learn how to harness your dreams to improve your sleep and health with dream engineer Dr. Michelle Carr. Register

Wed, Mar 11, 3:30pm - 5:00pm
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Celebrate Women's History Month with a discussion of Dorothy Sayer's 1937 novel, a Lord Peter Wimsey novel.. She was a premier "Queen of Crime" writer during the Golden Age of detective fiction. Register

Wed, Mar 11, 6:00pm - 7:30pm
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Read and discuss the best of today's Virginia literature—including books by Library of Virginia Literary Award winners and finalists in fiction and nonfiction. Register

Thu, Mar 12, 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Virtual
Join us for a virtual conversation with acclaimed author Kate Quinn about her latest fantastical work, The Astral Library.Register