It’s Houghton Library's 11th Annual Birthday Celebration for Emily Dickinson and you’re invited!

The Belle of Amherst turns 195 on December 10.

But she’s not the only birthday girl. Jane Austen turns 250 this year, so we celebrate her too!

Please join us for cake and camaraderie.

When: Friday, December 12, 2025, 10:30-noon

Where: Edison and Newman Room, Houghton Library

As in past years, we'll serve a 20-pound black cake baked according to Emily Dickinson’s own handwritten recipe and a traditional Caribbean black cake from the Brooklyn bakery of Angela Price.

Plus (shout-out to Jane Austen), this year we add one more step in the black cake genealogy—English plum pudding.

Harvard literature professor Deidre Lynch will grace us with a few words about these two beloved women writers, and we’ll have poetry recitations, as is our custom. If you'd like to recite a poem, read a brief bit of Austen, or share a black cake story, please contact Emily Walhout at ewalhout@fas.harvard.edu.

We’ll looking forward to seeing you there!