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CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Peter Balakian is one of the most masterful English-language poets Armenians have as a voice in the contemporary world. The Boston area had a rare opportunity on May 17 to hear him recite some of his newest works and engage in a dialogue with multitalented writer Askold Melnyczuk. The literary evening was hybrid in nature, allowing a broader audience on Zoom. However, people who came in person had the extra benefit of enjoying the refined atmosphere of a historic Victorian mansion, the home of Marceline Donaldson and Rev. Dr. Robert Bennett, in Cambridge, Mass. The event was cosponsored by the Grolier Poetry Book Shop and the Harvard Square Business Association. 

Flexible coworking company Industrious plans to open a site at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge’s Harvard Square, the third location it expects to debut locally this year.

A beautiful home in Cambridge, Massachusetts was the setting for an evening with Peter Balakian on Tuesday. “A totally unique ambience – I never read in a Victorian parlor before,” the guest of honor observed. Dozens of devotees filled the room to capacity and beyond in anticipation of an in-person reading by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author. The event was presented by the Grolier Poetry Book Shop and the Harvard Square Business Association, and thanks to the continuing pandemic, was also available over Zoom.

Balakian is the author of eight books of poems, including Ozone Journal, which won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for poetry, and Ziggurat, both published by the University of Chicago Press. His memoir Black Dog of Fate won the PEN/Albrand Award and was a New York Times notable book, and The Burning Tigris won the Raphael Lemkin Prize and was a New York Times bestseller and New York Times notable book. He is Donald M. and Constance H. Rebar Professor of the Humanities in the Department of English at Colgate University.

BosTen is your weekly guide to the best events and coolest happenings in and around Boston.

Celebrate spring with the 2022 Harvard Square MayFair

After a two-year hiatus, the Harvard Square Business Association will have its own outdoor party this Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. with its 37th annual MayFair. Along with local businesses selling food from outdoor tents, there will be 40 artisanal booths featuring local vendors, several outdoor beer gardens, and four music stages scattered around the square featuring a multitude of genres. The musical highlight comes at 4 p.m. on the main stage, where reggae-rock group Roots of Creation. For a full list of performers and additional details, check out the HSBA website. — Kevin Slane

A plan to transform a Harvard Square retail property that has had multiple previous redevelopment efforts fall through is set to be revived with a public hearing May 24.

The plan, a vertical expansion of the Crimson Galeria retail property at 57 John F. Kennedy St., would add three floors with 40 rental units on top of the existing two-story structure. Filed March 30 with the Cambridge Planning Board, the proposal would include eight affordable units. 

there is no time to smell the roses.

The shop is 107 years old and knows a thing or two about handling the Mother’s Day rush.

“It has been running around crazy as usual,” said Stephen Zedros, owner of Brattle Square Florist. “Through our experience, we have been able to know what we sell and what we will need. We got most of it this year.”

Harvard Square offers a cuisine crash-course you won’t find in a classroom. Hit the books (well, the menus) at these ten restaurants to discover ahead-of-the-curve farm-to-table fare, pizza with legacy sourdough starters, and sushi that’s a study in simplicity. Rounded out by house-made pastas swimming in sauce and more, the meals on the syllabus here ace the taste test.

Reopenings:Beat Brew Hall returns to Harvard Square (13 Brattle St.) on Friday, May 6, after a two-plus-year hiatus due to COVID. Chef Ryan Skeen calls his menu “New Cambridge Cuisine”: sesame and white bean dip with piquillo peppers on charred flatbread; brisket and smoked sweet potatoes; a burger with malted bacon jam, smoked tomatoes, bleu cheese, and truffle aioli. The restaurant also hosts all kinds of live music. Visit Tuesday through Sunday from 5 p.m.

More than five months have passed since an unhoused man known only as Michael was found dead in the early morning hours, in front of the Bank of America in Harvard Square.  

A memorial remains at the site, a reminder of the impromptu service that was held there on his behalf and of his impact on many business owners and other square regulars who met him.