Margaret Randall and Maria Melendez Kelson shared the stage, offering a rich blend of poetry and prose that reflects the full breadth of their talents. Margaret's new works are "Pages Lost and New - Essays" and "The Calendar's Whim - Poems," and Maria's is "Not the Killing Kind: A Novel."

In an exquisite evening of conversation and poetry, Julia Alvarez reminded us why she remains such a beloved literary treasure. In thoughtful dialogue with Carmella Padilla, she shared her life’s story—gracefully echoing the spirit of her new work, Visitations.

Historian Peter Stark illuminated a fascinating piece of history as he told the story of Conquistador Francisco Coronado’s 1540 expedition. A glittering column of 2,000 men heading into the unknown. Their destination was El Norte Misterioso—The Mysterious North, present-day United States—where fabulous cities of gold were rumored to shine beyond the horizon.

Tod Robberson, in conversation with Jim Fallk, gave us all the nitty-gritty, never-before-told details of the fascinating story of the Globemaster cargo plane—possibly carrying a “Fat Man” bomb— which was dispatched to Britain in 1951 with 53 passengers and crew, including elite specialists in atomic warfare. The Globemaster never reached its destination.

Test Site Poetry Prize Winners Jami Macarty, The Long Now Conditions Permit: Poems, and Kyce Bello, Far Country, read from their works, followed by a rich conversation with artist Cynthia Pirloul-Broshi. The conversation meandered through the similarities in their collections, their processes, and their hopes. It was a balm for troubled times.

Pre-empting National Poetry Month by a day or two, poets Jenny George, Kim Parko, and Anne Haven McDonnell gave us a beautiful entree into this celebratory month of poetry. Jenny read from her 2024 collection, After Image, in which she asks what lingers in the face of death and what falls away. Kim read new poems, and Anne launched her latest collection, Singing Under Snow, poetry that “exults in the grit and texture of the natural world, in the unassuming and overlooked wonders beneath our feet and beyond our doors—in lichen and snow, in martens and mushrooms.”

Jack Ratliff shared his youthful, often death-defying, escapades in the rodeo, the navy and the courthouse with author Hampton Sides and a packed house of friends and family.

Discussing their collaboration with Dr. Jennifer Nez Denetdale, Dorothy Denetclaw and Matt Fitzsimons shared how Dorothy's family oral history and his research came together to complete the book's narrative that "honors Diné oral histories and showcases Diné resistance and resilience in the face of settler violence.”

Seated in front of his exquisite images of White Sands, acclaimed photographer Craig Varjabedian chatted with James Ayers, Assistant Director, University of New Mexico Press, about the beauty and ever-changing landscape of White Sands National Monument and the challenges of capturing its essence in his photographs.