Nearly two dozen Bay Area authors shaping the local literary scene will be honored next month, when the Berkeley Public Library Foundation hosts its 20th Annual Authors Dinner in the recently renovated spaces of the historic downtown central library.
The foundation said in a statement that the honorees at the March 4 event include Prince Harry’s Pulitzer Prize-winning ghostwriter, a MacArthur fellow, a Nobel laureate, officials from both the Obama and Clinton administrations and authors from every genre. All have recently published books.
A silent auction featuring dinners, books, wines and East Bay treats will be open for bidding by dinner guests and the public.
The honorary chair for the evening is Jennifer Doudna, winner of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the subject of Walter Isaacson’s blockbuster bestseller “The Code Breaker.”
The foundation will present its 2023 Fred & Pat Cody Award to the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life, founded in Berkeley in 1962 and now one of the world’s preeminent collections of Jewish cultural and historical materials. The award recognizes outstanding work to shape, broaden and illuminate Berkeley’s literary landscape.
The event supports innovations and improvements at all five Berkeley Public Library neighborhood branches, including the renovations at the central library (including the new teen room, upgraded mystery and reading rooms, and other enhancements), access to laptops and technology for library patrons, planned improvements for children’s spaces, and literacy programs for preschoolers through adults.
More information about the Berkeley Library Foundation and the Authors Dinner are available on the organization’s website.