Awards
For the fourth consecutive year, the Kansas City Public Library has earned a 5-star designation from Library Journal. Only 85 public libraries nationwide – less than than 1 percent of the total of 9,245 – attained that top-tier standing.
For the third consecutive year, the Kansas City Public Library earns a 5-star designation from Library Journal.
Memories are made at the Library each day. Our staff members reminisced about some of the moments from the past year that stood out as unique and notable -- stories and anecdotes underscoring how the Library is a special place that offers so much to our community.
If your to-read pile needs a refresh, check out collections of recent winners and nominees for book awards ranging from the Carnegie Medal for Excellence to picture books for children that received a Caldecott Award nod. We’ve packaged up these prize-winning reads in our catalog for you to enjoy!
This year's Writers for Readers literary fundraising event returns in virtual format on Wednesday, October 20, 2021, at 6 p.m. with a special lineup featuring celebrated author Patrick Radden Keefe, whose bestselling Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty chronicles the ultra-rich family behind America’s deadly opioid epidemic. The evening also introduces the first Maya Angelou Book Award winner, with remarks by Angelou’s son.