The Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library opened in a donated storefront in the author’s hometown of Indianapolis in 2011. Over the years, the institution’s success as a tourist attraction and literary pilgrimage site made it obvious that the museum couldn’t stay at the location long term. So when the museum/library’s lease expired in February 2019, the board decided not to renew the lease. After several months without a home, the museum is now preparing to open in a permanent facility thanks to a fund campaign that raised $1.5 million.

The rebooted Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library opened for a “sneak preview” on September 22, just in time for the American Library Association’s Banned Books Week; at the museum, though, the event is called “Freedom to Read Week” because, as the museum notes on its website, “some folks thought we were celebrating the banning of books!” Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five ranks among the most frequently banned literary classics, and the author was an outspoken advocate against censorship.