Young Lions of The New York Public Library

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Young Lions of The New York Public Library

The Young Lions are a special membership group for people who love literature, love a good cocktail, and love the Library.

Young Lions members receive exclusive access to engaging and inspiring events. Young Lions are eternally curious about the world around them. Coming from diverse industries and backgrounds, Young Lions support The New York Public Library's mission of lifelong learning. Since being founded in 1999, the Young Lions program has raised over $5 million to support the life and work of the Library. The Y

oung Lions have also brought valuable recognition to dozens of talented authors through the annual Young Lions Fiction Award, a $10,000 prize given to a writer under the age of 35.

05/28/2026

The Twenty-Sixth Young Lion Fiction Award is less than three weeks away! This week’s author spotlight is Harris Lahti for his book ‘Foreclosure Gothic’.

Harris Lahti’s short stories have appeared in BOMB, New York Tyrant, Ninth Letter, Southwest Review, Forever Magazine, and elsewhere. He co-founded the new press, Cash 4 Gold Books, and edits fiction for FENCE. For a living, he paints and renovates houses in New York’s Hudson Valley.

‘Foreclosure Gothic’ reimagines the American Gothic against the backdrop of today's Hudson Valley. The story tells of ex-Hollywood actor Vic Greener as he falls in love with the elusive Heather Roswell. The couple, following in the footsteps of Vic's father, resolves to make a life restoring one foreclosed home after another. Then comes the uncanny, destabilizing arrival of new tenants in their duplex, and the Greener's shocking discovery upon their departure. With evocative and unsettling black and white photos throughout, this debut novel is at once a skewed portrait of three generations of Greener men, an intimate look at both childhood and parenthood and an examination of the friction between chasing one's dream and working to make money.

Members can join us June 15 to celebrate Harris Lahti and our four other talented finalist at the Young Lion Fiction Award, made possible by our lead sponsor Madewell! Non-members and guests can join us at the After Party directly following the Ceremony at 8PM. Click the link in our bio to reserve or purchase tickets. Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

05/20/2026

The countdown to the Twenty-Sixth Young Lion Fiction Award continues! This week’s author spotlight is Kyle Edwards for his book ‘small ceremonies’, which has already won the 2025 Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction and was nominated for the 2026 Dublin Literary Award.

Raised on the Lake Manitoba First Nation, Edwards has reported throughout Turtle Island and held fellowships at Harvard and Stanford Universities. He has won two National Magazine Awards for his reporting and was named Emerging Indigenous Journalist by the Canadian Association of Journalists in 2019. He is currently a Provost Fellow at the University of Southern California.

‘small ceremonies’ is a heart-wrenching coming-of-age story that follows the friendships, hopes, fears, and struggles of a group of Native high school students from Winnipeg, Manitoba’s North End, illuminating what it's like to grow up in the heart of an Indigenous city. As its richly drawn characters navigate the thrilling independence of adulthood and the loss of innocence that accompanies it, readers can't help but root for these characters and their community. In prose alternately searing, poignant, and poetic, ‘small ceremonies’ is nothing less than a showcase for a brand new voice.

Members can join us June 15 to celebrate Kyle Edwards and our four other talented finalist and the Young Lion Fiction Award, made possible by our lead sponsor Madewell! Non-members and guests can join us at the After Party directly following the Ceremony at 8PM. Click the link in our bio to reserve or purchase tickets. Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

05/15/2026

Last Night in the Library with Another great Cocktails & Conversation in the 📚

05/07/2026

As we count down to the Twenty-Sixth Young Lion Fiction Award we will be highlighting our finalists and the books they are honored for.

Our first author spotlight is Ariel Courage for ‘Bad Nature’!

Ariel Courage is a graduate of the Brooklyn College MFA program, where she was editor-in-chief of the Brooklyn Review. She’s currently an assistant fiction editor at Agni. Her short work has appeared in Guernica, New Limestone Review, Joyland, and The End. She was also a 2019 Kimmel Harding Nelson resident.

‘Bad Nature’ follows Hester, a just-turned-40 year old woman who was diagnosed with terminal cancer, as she ventures out to California to kill her estranged father. She hasn’t made it far when she runs into John, an environmental activist in need of a ride to different superfund sites across the United States. From five-star Midwestern hotels to cultish Southwestern compounds, the two slowly make their way across the country. But will the revelations they experience along the way dissuade Hester from her goal? Part road-trip novel, part revenge tale, part lament for our ongoing ecological crisis, it’s ultimately a deft examination of the indulgence of holding grudges, moral ambivalence, and the eternal possibility of redemption.

Members can join us June 15 to celebrate Ariel Courage and our four other talented finalist and the Young Lion Fiction Award, made possible by our lead sponsor Madewell! Non-members and guests can join us at the After Party directly following the Ceremony at 8 PM. Click the link in our bio to reserve or purchase tickets. Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

05/06/2026

Still thinking about the Schomburg Centennial Gala last week! What an incredible evening. We were honored to host the After Party with our friends . Congrats on 100 years of the !

04/21/2026

Member Tickets for the Young Lion Fiction Award and Guest Tickets for the After-Party are available now! Join us on Monday, June 15 at 7 PM at The New York Public Library to honor the best young fiction authors of today.

Tickets are available until Monday, June 8 at 5 PM, or until they are sold out.

For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit the link in our bio or contact [email protected]

04/16/2026

We are excited to announce the finalists for the Twenty-Sixth Young Lions Fiction Award! Congratulations to Ariel Courage for Bad Nature; Kyle Edwards for Small Ceremonies; Harris Lahti for Foreclosure Gothic; Carrie R. Moore for Make Your Way Home; and Stephanie Wambugu for Lonely Crowds.

Thank you to our leading sponsor, Madewell, and our supporting sponsors The Bookshelf of Jennifer Morrison, Fort Hamilton Distillery, Liquid Fables, and Literati Spirits for their generous support of this event.

Tickets for the Young Lions Fiction Award and After Party on Monday, June 15, 2026 will be available next week on our website. If you have any questions please email us at [email protected].

11/05/2025

Monday night we were Dancing in the Dark and celebrating the 2025 class of Library Lions Honorees: Louise Erdrich, Daniel Kehlmann, James McBride, James Patterson, Shonda Rhimes, and Bruce Springsteen. Special gratitude to our Young Lions Host Chairs for the evening, Emily Coit & Eric Burgh and Christopher Liu & Lisa Zuckerwise! Thank you as well to all of the Young Lions and their guests who supported the Library Lions Gala and the Young Lions Benefit Party. Shout out to Cafe Aroma for the keeping the energy going all night with espresso martinis!

10/28/2025

Last chance to buy tickets to the Young Lions Benefit Party! Ticket sales for the event close Thursday night, October 30. Buy tickets now to secure your spot. Member and non-member tickets can be purchased using the link in our bio.

If you have any questions about the event please reach out to [email protected]. Questions regarding membership can be sent to [email protected].

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The New York Public Library
New York, NY

Website

http://www.nypl.org/joinyl

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