The Boston Poetry List Newsletter: October 3, 2026
Hello there!
Our next newsletter will go out on November 1st and will include events for November and December! So please send your events to us by October 31st at the latest!
We have a few readings included here that are outside Massachusetts – in particular a reading with Doug Rothchild who has long been a very important part of our Boston Community. If the reading is roadtrippable, we are happy to include it!
Yours in Poetry,
Suzanne Mercury and Christina Strong
Upcoming Poetry Events for October and November
October 1, 2026, 6—7:30pm
Nora Lange
Visiting Writers Series, UMass Amherst
Old Chapel, UMass Amherst, 144 Hicks Way, Amherst, MA 01002
Now in its sixty-third year, the nationally-renowned Visiting Writers Series at UMass Amherst presents emerging and established writers of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.
More information
October 2, 2026, 7—8:30pm
Fully Versed: John Bonanni, Mckendy Fils-Aimé, Joey Gould, Danielle Jones
All She Wrote Books
75 Washington Street, Somerville, MA 02143
Celebrate four new collections by Mass-based poets! A reading and Q&A with four poets writing resistance in their recently released collections! Doors open at 6:45pm. Hosted by Key K. Bird.
October 2, 2026, 7pm
Trace Fossils 2026 Anthology Launch featuring readings by Danielle DeTiberus, Grace Talusan, Sean Scapellato, Niamh Carmichael, and more with an introduction by co-founders Jessie Leitzel and Ellie Reid
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138
This event will take place synchronously in-store and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More Information
October 4, 2026, 2—4pm
NEPC @ The Menino: Mark Pawlak, Mid Walsh, and Susan Eisenberg
New England Poetry Club
Menino Arts Center, 26 Central Ave, Hyde Park, MA 02136-2946
An open mic will follow the featured poets.
More information
October 4, 2026, 3pm
Doug Rothschild, Carson Jordan, John Mason
POEMS OUT LOUD
Poetry State Forest
53 Tsassawassa Lake Road
East Nassau, NY, 12062
October 6, 2026, 7pm
Keetje Kuipers Poetry Reading
Smith College, Boutelle-Day Poetry Center
Weinstein Auditorium, 5 Chapin Dr, Northampton, MA 01063
More information
October 7, 2026, 7pm
Jen Siraganian: A Reading and Conversation
Amherst College Creative Writing Center
CHI Think Tank (Lyceum 101), Aliki Perroti & Seth Frank Lyceum Building
197 South Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01002
More information
October 7, 2026 (and every Wednesday!), 7—9pm
Speak Up
Walnut Street Cafe
157 Walnut St, Lynn, MA 01905
Speak Up is a spoken word open mic a the Walnut Street Cafe in West Lynn. We welcome poets, storytellers, comedians, activist, artists, musicians and others who want to be heard in a supportive community environment. Each Wednesday we welcome a featured performer following the open mic. Signup starts: 7:00pm. Open mic: 7:30-8:30pm. Feature: 8:30-9:00pm. Join us and bring your stuff!
October 8, 2026, 7pm
Adrie Rose Chapbook Release
Smith College, Boutelle-Day Poetry Center
Weinstein Auditorium, 5 Chapin Dr, Northampton, MA 01063
More information
October 8, 2026, 7pm
K.T. Landon, Carla Panciera, Scott Withiam
2nd Thursday Poetry Readings
Menino Arts Center, 26 Central Avenue Hyde Park, MA 02136
All readings are free and open to the public with an open mic before the featured speakers. Space is limited at the open mic, signup starts at 6:45pm the night of the reading.
More information
October 8, 2026, 7—9pm
Pour Me a Poem
Feature Poet: Bob McKetchnie, followed by open mic
Heart of the Story Editorial & Coaching Services and Sara Letourneau, Poet, Wayne-Daniel Berard and Sara Letourneau
51 Park St, Mansfield, MA 02048-2231,
Poets Wayne-Daniel Berard and Sara Letourneau are hosting Pour Me a Poem on the second Thursday of each month. The feature poet is followed by a quick break, followed by the main open mic.
October 8, 2026, 7pm
Hugo Dos Santos and Anthony Walton with an introduction by Meia Geddes
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138
This event will take place synchronously in-store and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More Information
October 9, 2026 (and every Wednesday!), 7—9pm
Stone Soup Poetry (online only)
Stone Soup Poetry meets every Wednesday online via Zoom. It is an open mic, usually with a feature poet. Please check out their website for updates on future live gatherings, feature poets, and information on how to join.
October 9, 2026 (and every Friday!), 6:30—8:30pm
Friday Poetry/City Night Readings Series
Little Crêpe Café
102 Oxford St, Cambridge, MA 02138
The Friday Poetry/City Night Readings Series brings together writers, performers, and lovers of literature for evenings of poetry and the art of words every Friday. Each evening includes a feature writer, followed by an open mic. All are welcome.
More information
October 9, 2026, 7pm
Cardboard House Press and the Grolier Poetry Book Shop present Victoria Guerrero-Peirano, Judah Rubin, Giancarlo Huapaya and Honora Spicer with an introduction by Jaime Francisco Matorras
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138
This event will take place synchronously in-store and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More Information
October 11, 2026, 4pm
An Afternoon with Charles Bernstein
Xit the Bear Reading in the Press Room
10th Anniversary Season: Opening Day!
90 Oxford St., Somerville, MA . 02143 (Please note: NOT Cambridge!)
The Press Room is located down the drive, behind the house, across the garden. We will be open for guests starting at 3:30pm. $5 donation at the door is greatly appreciated.
October 11, 2026, 2pm
Oliver de la Paz and Jonathan Aibel
Brookline Poetry Series
Hunneman Hall
Brookline Public Library
361 Washington St, Brookline, MA 02445
Our featured readers are followed by our open mic, named the Best in Boston in 2005 by the Boston Globe, all poets are welcome to sign up.
October 11, 2026, 10:30am
Cynthia Barger and Ilan Mochari
Boston Yetzirah Salon
Please RSVP at this Google Form to receive the address:
https://tinyurl.com/bostonyetzirah
Boston Area Yetzirah Salon is a monthly event featuring local Jewish poets who will read original work and participate in a Q&A. Snacks, coffee and tea, and fruit will be provided! Join us for a morning of Jewish poetry. Through our shared love of language and our belief in the healing power of words, we can create community, take care of one another, and honor our vulnerability and humanity. We welcome poetry lovers of all traditions.
October 14, 2026, 7pm
William Rowe and Helen Dimos read Trilce by César Vallejo with an introduction by Giancarlo Huapaya
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138
This event will take place synchronously in-store and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More Information
October 14, 2026, 6pm
Boston Writers Salon with Lesley Bannatyne, Thalia Taylor, Cameron Vanderwerf, Olivia Kate Cerone, Kaleigh Barker, Jacob Orlando, Sarah Ruth Penna, Colleen Black, Cate Crane, Liz Simmons, Adam Butler, and Shari Caplan
The Sea Hag
49 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge MA
Featured readers will be followed by an open mic.
More information
October 15, 2026, 7pm
Matthew Porto, Daniel Tobin, Susan Eisenberg
Rozzie Reads Poetry & Open Mic
Roslindale House
120 Poplar St. Roslindale, MA
Parking is on the street, in unnumbered slots, and in the rear of the building. Accessible venue.
October 15, 2026, 6—7:30pm
Oral History Initiative: On Fanny Howe
Woodberry Poetry Room
Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, Harvard University
24 Quincy St, Cambridge, MA, 02138
Join us on October 15th, on what would have been Fanny Howe’s 86th birthday, for a warm, welcoming gathering in her honor. Emceed by John Mulrooney, the event will bring together a group of Howe’s Boston-area friends—including Jim Dunn, Keith Jones, Penny Janeway, Richard Kearney, Ruth Lepson, and Linda Norton--for a loving and lively conversation.
The event will close with an audio collage, created by filmmaker and friend Sue Schardt and a reception at the Poetry Room (with victuals from Formaggio and the new issue of spoKe magazine on hand, a substantive tribute issue dedicated to Fanny Howe and Danielle Legros Georges). Come one, come all.
Livestreaming also available via the WPR YouTube Channel.
October 15, 2026, 7pm
Arrowsmith Press, The Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute, and Grolier Poetry Book Shop present Yaryna Chornohuz and Amira El-Zein with an introduction by Askold Melnyczuk
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138
This event will take place synchronously in-store and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More Information
October 17, 2026,
Mike Fiorito and Mia Millefoglie
Italian American Writers Association (IAWA)
I Am Books, 124 Salem Street, Boston, MA
Open mic starts at 6pm, followed by featured readers.
More information
October 17, 2026, 10am—6pm
Boston Book Festival 2026
Copley Square, Boston MA
The Boston Book Festival gathers the Greater Boston community together with authors around the transformative joys of reading, the power of stories, and the exchange of ideas through a wide range of free programming.
List of 2026 Festival Presenters
Contact: info@bostonbookfest.org
October 18, 2026, 2—5pm
NEPC 2026 Contest Reading
New England Poetry Club (Online only)
The reading will take place in two parts: the first beginning at 2:00 pm and the second at 3:30 pm. There will be an “intermission” break between the parts.
List of winners and finalists
Advance registration is required! Visit our website for instructions. Once registered, you will receive a confirmation email with your personal session link, which will work for both parts of the reading.
October 19, 2026, 8pm
Natalie Shapero and Kathy Fagan
Blacksmith House Poetry Series
Cambridge Center for Adult Education
56 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA
Admission is $5 and tickets are available at the door. Please note that seating is limited.
More information
October 19, 2026, 6—7:30pm
MOON COUNTRY: Contemporary Korean Poetry in Translation
Spencer Lee-Lenfield, Mattho Mandersloot, and Shin Hae-uk.
Woodberry Poetry Room
Lamont Library, 11 Quincy St, Cambridge, MA 02138
Join Black Ocean and the Woodberry Poetry Room for an evening of readings and conversation celebrating the Moon Country Korean Poetry series, which brings contemporary Korean poetry into English translation. The program will explore the poems themselves as well as the intimate, collaborative work of carrying voice, image, rhythm, and cultural context across languages.
Livestreaming also available via the WPR YouTube Channel.
October 20, 2026, 7pm
John Peck, Mark Scroggins, Elizabeth T. Gray, Patrick Pritchett
Amherst Books
8 Main St. Amherst, MA 01002
Celebrating the release of John Peck's EXCURSUS: Selected Prose (Black Square Editions).
October 20, 2026, 7pm
Erika Meitner and Jenny Browne
Philip Levine Poetry Project Reading
Tufts University, Crane Room in Page Hall, 12 Upper Campus Rd, Medford, MA
October 21, 2026, 6:30pm
Erika Meitner and Jenny Browne
Papercuts Bookshop
60 South St, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
October 21, 2026, 7pm
Lindsay Turner introduced and in conversation with Nina MacLaughlin
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138
This event will take place synchronously in-store and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More Information
October 22, 2026, 7pm
Pawn Shop of Coincidence by Andrea L. Fry (Grolier Poetry Press) book launch with an introduction by and in conversation with Rob Bowers
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138
This event will take place synchronously in-store and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More Information
October 22, 2026, 6—7:30pm
Juliana Spahr
Visiting Writers Series, UMass Amherst
Old Chapel, UMass Amherst, 144 Hicks Way, Amherst, MA 01002
Now in its sixty-third year, the nationally-renowned Visiting Writers Series at UMass Amherst presents emerging and established writers of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.
More information
October 22, 2026, 8pm
January Gill O’Neil, M.P. Carver, and Rebecca Hart Olander
Square Root Readings
Meditations in an Emergency Poetry Reading + Open Mic
Square Root, 2 Corinth St, Roslindale, MA 02131
Cover: $5, or pay what you can. All proceeds go to Boston GLASS.
More information
October 24, 2026, 4pm–6pm
Larry Price and Michael Ruby
OtherWords Reading Series - October
OtherWords readings are curated by Michael Gottlieb and Evelyn Reilly. This series is sponsored by the Friends of Great Barrington Libraries and the Board of Trustees of the Great Barrington Libraries. Come for great readings and good company, along with drinks and food provided by the Friends of Great Barrington Libraries.
Mason Library, 231 Main St., Great Barrington, MA, 01230
Free and open to all
October 25, 2026, 4pm
Denise Levertov: A Slight Return
With readings reminiscences and new books by three poets who were deeply influenced by the Place she made in poetry: Mark Pawlak, Dick Lourie, and David Shaddock.
Xit the Bear Reading in the Press Room
10th Anniversary Season
90 Oxford St., Somerville, MA . 02143 (Please note: NOT Cambridge!)
The Press Room is located down the drive, behind the house, across the garden. We will be open for guests starting at 3:30pm.
October 25, 2026, 2—3pm
Poetry at Fruitlands: Kevin Gallagher, Claire Conroy, Eileen P. Kennedy
New England Poetry Club
Fruitlands Museum, Wayside Gallery
102 Prospect Hill Rd, Harvard, MA 01451
Registration requested
October 26, 2026, 8pm
Robert Clinton and Roland Pease
Blacksmith House Poetry Series
Cambridge Center for Adult Education
56 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA
Admission is $5 and tickets are available at the door. Please note that seating is limited.
More information
October 26, 2026, 7pm
The Black Box Reading Series: Featured Readers TBA
Boston University
STH 625 (School of Theology)
745 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA
More information
October 27, 2026, 7pm
Julian Randall and Noel Quiñones: A Reading and Conversation
Amherst College Creative Writing Center
CHI Think Tank (Lyceum 101), Aliki Perroti & Seth Frank Lyceum building
197 South Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01002
More information
October 27, 2026, 7pm
Jason Schneiderman Poetry Reading
Smith College, Boutelle-Day Poetry Center
Weinstein Auditorium, 5 Chapin Dr, Northampton, MA 01063
More information
October 28, 2026, 1—4pm
John Ashbery Typewriter Hours
Woodberry Poetry Room, Room 330, Lamont Library, Harvard University Cambridge, MA
Come celebrate the presence of John Ashbery's iconic Royal KMM typewriter in the Poetry Room– and compose on it!– at this event. Reservations are required and will open on October 10th on the WPR website. This event will take place on additional days TBA throughout the semester. You can also contact WPR to reserve the typewriter for a class you are teaching, or to use it for a special project.
More information
October 30, 2026, 7:30pm
The Poetry Brothel Boston: MONSTERS!
The Poetry Society of New York
Sonia Live Music Venue, 10 Brookline Street, Cambridge, MA 02139
The Poetry Brothel Boston invites you into the forest for MONSTERS, an immersive Halloween literary cabaret and film-noir fever dream of things that go bump in the night. An immersive literary cabaret featuring burlesque, drag, mysticism, one-on-one readings, & a startling glimpse of your innermost self.
More information
November 1, 2026, 1pm
Greenfield First Sunday Reading: Lee Desrosiers
LAVA Center
324 Main Street, Greenfield, MA
November 2, 2026, 6—7:45pm
VOCARIUM READING SERIES: Ariana Reines & Eileen Myles
Woodberry Poetry Room
Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, Harvard University
24 Quincy St, Cambridge, MA, 02138
On the eve of the 2026 Midterm Elections, the Poetry Room invites you to come together for a reading by two of the most fearless, visionary, and uncompromising poets writing in America today, Ariana Reines and Eileen Myles—who, in 1992, ran President as a write-in candidate.
Together, Myles and Reines will offer a night of unruliness, resilience, tenderness, ferocity, and possibility. This not-to-missed evening will be introduced by K. Prevallet, who will provide an invocation.
This reading will mark the 2nd Annual Fanny Howe Memorial Reading.
ONLINE ATTENDANCE: Livestreaming available via the WPR YouTube Channel.
November 2, 2026, 8pm
Pádraig Ó Tuama and Susan Stewart
Blacksmith House Poetry Series
Cambridge Center for Adult Education
56 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA
Admission is $5 and tickets are available at the door. Please note that seating is limited.
More information
November 2, 2026 (and every Monday!), 5pm
Common Folk Writer's Jam
165 E Main Street, North Adams, MA, United States, Massachusetts 01247
A relaxed, judgment-free space to bring notebooks, practice prompts, share drafts, and read poetry or prose collectively.
November 3, 2026, 6pm
Writers Night Out with Don Lesser
Forbes Library, 20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060
Join Straw Dog Writers Guild for Writers Night Out with featured writer Don Lesser, at Forbes Library. No registration required. If you want to participate in open mic, please sign up by 5:50pm. Ten names will be randomly selected. Each reader will have five minutes.
November 4, 2026, 7pm
Kimiko Hahn: A Reading and Conversation
Amherst College Creative Writing Center
CHI Think Tank (Lyceum 101), Aliki Perroti & Seth Frank Lyceum building
197 South Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01002
More information
November 5, 2026, 7pm
Italian American Writers Association’s “Big Night” at the 2026 Italian American Studies Association Conference: A Group Reading of IAWA and IASA Writers from Boston and Beyond
TCC Atrium, Tsungming Tu Complex, Tufts University School of Engineering
109 Anderson Hall, 200 College Avenue, Medford, MA 02155
Conference registration required
November 5, 2026, 7pm
Audrey Henderson and Alan Smith Soto present Collected Poems by Mark Smith-Soto
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
This event will take place synchronously in-store at 6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138, and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More information
November 9, 2026, 7pm
Lloyd Schwartz
Harvard Book Store
Harvard Book Store, 1256 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02138-3820
More information
November 9, 2026, 7pm
Mandy Moe Pwint Tu: A Reading and Conversation
Amherst College Creative Writing Center
CHI Think Tank (Lyceum 101), Aliki Perroti & Seth Frank Lyceum building
197 South Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01002
More information
November 10, 2026, 7pm
Ama Codjoe Poetry Reading
Smith College, Boutelle-Day Poetry Center
Weinstein Auditorium, 5 Chapin Dr, Northampton, MA 01063
More information
November 12, 2026, 7pm
Tom Cole in conversation with Michael Bronski
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
This event will take place synchronously in-store at 6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138, and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More information
November 12, 2026, 7—9pm
Pour Me a Poem (Poetry open Mic)
Feature Poet: Timothy Gager
Heart of the Story Editorial & Coaching Services and Sara Letourneau, Poet, Wayne-Daniel Berard and Sara Letourneau
51 Park St, Mansfield, MA 02048-2231,
Poets Wayne-Daniel Berard and Sara Letourneau are hosting Pour Me a Poem on the second Thursday of each month. The feature poet is followed by a quick break, followed by the main open mic.
November 12, 2026, 7:30pm
Claire Messud
The reading will be followed by a catered reception and book signing. Books will be for sale.
The Ha Jin Visiting Lecturer Series, Boston University
Boston University Duan Family Center for Computing and Data Sciences
Room 1750
665 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA 02215
November 12 & 13, 2026, 7:30pm
Sub Rosa: The Emperor's Feast
The Allston Abbey, 5 St Lukes Rd, Allston, MA 02134
Sub Rosa: The Emperor's Feast invites the audience into an ancient Greco-Roman inspired world to engage with elements of personal and societal transformation. Audience members are invited to take part in discovering occult mysteries, engaging in gentle rituals of self-knowledge, and if they choose, in helping to overthrow a despotic Emperor.
Tickets and more information
November 15th, 2026, 4pm
Kevin Gallagher and Mary Buchinger
Xit the Bear Reading in the Press Room
10th Anniversary Season
90 Oxford St., Somerville, MA . 02143 (Please note: NOT Cambridge!)
The Press Room is located down the drive, behind the house, across the garden. We will be open for guests starting at 3:30pm. $5 donation at the door is greatly appreciated.
November 15th, 2026, 2pm
Alan Shapiro and Jason Sommer
Brookline Poetry Series
Hunneman Hall
Brookline Public Library
361 Washington St, Brookline, MA 02445
Our featured readers are followed by our open mic, named the Best in Boston in 2005 by the Boston Globe, all poets are welcome to sign up.
More information
November 16, 2026, 8pm
Jennifer Barber and David Orr
Blacksmith House Poetry Series
Cambridge Center for Adult Education
56 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA
Admission is $5 and tickets are available at the door. Please note that seating is limited.
More information
November 18, 2026, 7pm
Alfred Corn and Marilyn Hacker with an introduction Lloyd Schwartz and Daniel Tobin
The Grolier Poetry Book Shop
This event will take place synchronously in-store at 6 Plympton Street, Cambridge MA 02138, and on Zoom. Please sign up ahead of time because there is limited space.
Tickets for in-person
Tickets for Zoom
More information
November 18, 2026, 6—7:30pm
WAX POETICS: Shane McCrae on John Berryman
Woodberry Poetry Room
Lamont Library, 11 Quincy St, Cambridge, MA 02138
The Woodberry Poetry Room invites you to Wax Poetics, a series that brings together our landmark audio archive with readings by contemporary poets. This season, Shane McCrae will join us for an evening devoted to John Berryman (1914-1972), whose previously uncollected Dream Songs McCrae edited for Farrar, Straus and Giroux in 2025. Introduction by Prof. Stephanie Burt.
The evening will begin with McCrae sharing selections from his own work alongside recently digitized recordings of Berryman from the Poetry Room's archives, followed by a book signing and reception. All are welcome to this evening of collective listening and communing with voices old and new.
Livestreaming also available via the WPR YouTube Channel.
November 23, 2026, 7pm
The Black Box Reading Series: Featured Readers TBA
Boston University
STH 625 (School of Theology)
745 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA
More information
November 23, 2026, 8pm
John Skoyles & Clay Ventre
Blacksmith House Poetry Series
Cambridge Center for Adult Education
56 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA
Admission is $5 and tickets are available at the door. Please note that seating is limited.
More information
November 30, 2026, 8pm
Robert Pinsky
Blacksmith House Poetry Series
Cambridge Center for Adult Education
56 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA
Admission is $5 and tickets are available at the door. Please note that seating is limited.
More information