On Saturday, October 11, the Central Library is open to registered Heartland Book Festival attendees only. Regular services, such as hold pickups, public computers and phones, and public meeting rooms, will not be available.
In 2020, the Kansas City Public Library established the Maya Angelou Book Award with the University of Missouri-Kansas City, the University of Missouri-Columbia, Missouri State University, and Northwest Missouri State, Truman State, and Southeast Missouri State universities.
Angelou was an acclaimed, Missouri-born memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist, and the prize celebrates contemporary writers whose work demonstrates a commitment to social justice. The award alternates annually between poetry and fiction.