The last time I was at a release party for a “St. Paul Almanac,” there were readings, there was music, there was cake, there was a very young Native dancer, there were acrobats from Circus Juventas — it was a joyful and festive occasion.

That was a few years ago, and I am not entirely sure what is planned for the party for this year’s almanac, but you should go and check it out. It’s at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 18 in the Securian Club Room of CHS Field in St. Paul’s Lowertown.

The almanac is a work of wonder and inclusiveness, each year featuring established writers, artists and photographers as well as emerging ones. This year’s edition includes work by Kao Kalia Yang, Patricia Kirkpatrick, Ethna McKiernan, Wing Young Huie, the great Carol Connolly, Ta-coumba Aiken and more than 190 others.

The theme is “Resistance and Resilience.” Reading it, says Minnesota poet laureate Joyce Sutphen, “makes me less lonely in the world, gives me hope, and soothes my jangled nerves.” With cake.

LAURIE HERTZEL