Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Our next stop…the Buckeye State! 📚✨
This episode shines a spotlight on Ohio’s powerful role in shaping American literature—from Pulitzer Prize–winning poets like Mary Oliver (Devotions), Paul Laurence Dunbar (Sympathy), and Toni Morrison (The Bluest Eye) to the young Cleveland creators who gave the world Superman and changed comics forever. We also revisit barrier-breaking voices such as Virginia Hamilton (M.C. Higgins, the Great) and modernist master Sherwood Anderson (Winesburg, Ohio).
Hear from celebrated contemporary writers with deep ties to Ohio—former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove (Thomas and Beulah), bestselling science fiction author John Scalzi (Old Man’s War series), acclaimed graphic novelist Derf Backderf (Kent State), and poet and essayist Hanif Abdurraqib (There’s Always This Year). Each reflects on how the state’s people, landscapes, and history inspired their work.
Along the way, take a peek inside some of Ohio’s most iconic literary landmarks from authors’ homes to indie bookstores, and the Mercantile Library with its 10,000-year lease— and travel the Ohio Literary Trail, discovering a state where stories are deeply rooted and endlessly alive.
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#pbsbooks #pbs #author #bookclub #books #readingroadtrip #ohio
Our next stop…the Buckeye State! 📚✨
This episode shines a spotlight on Ohio’s powerful role in shaping American literature—from Pulitzer Prize–winning poets like Mary Oliver (Devotions), Paul Laurence Dunbar (Sympathy), and Toni Morrison (The Bluest Eye) to the young Cleveland creators who gave the world Superman and changed comics forever. We also revisit barrier-breaking voices such as Virginia Hamilton (M.C. Higgins, the Great) and modernist master Sherwood Anderson (Winesburg, Ohio).
Hear from celebrated contemporary writers with deep ties to Ohio—former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove (Thomas and Beulah), bestselling science fiction author John Scalzi (Old Man’s War series), acclaimed graphic novelist Derf Backderf (Kent State), and poet and essayist Hanif Abdurraqib (There’s Always This Year). Each reflects on how the state’s people, landscapes, and history inspired their work.
Along the way, take a peek inside some of Ohio’s most iconic literary landmarks from authors’ homes to indie bookstores, and the Mercantile Library with its 10,000-year lease— and travel the Ohio Literary Trail, discovering a state where stories are deeply rooted and endlessly alive.
Explore our website: pbsbooks.org
Subscribe to our newsletter: pbsbooks.org/subscribe
Join the Readers Club: facebook.com/groups/pbsbooksreadersclub
Support us: pbsbooks.org/donate
Find your next book: pbsbooks.org/bookshop
#pbsbooks #pbs #author #bookclub #books #readingroadtrip #ohio
