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"I am completely smitten with the Lunch with Books patrons...who welcomed me like a long-lost cousin. It takes two to have a successful reading: an enthusiastic presenter and an engaged audience, and boy did the stars align for us." -Marie Manilla, Still Life with Plums

"Lunch With Books is an outstanding program -- one of the best in the country." -NPR Journalist Matthew Algeo, The President is a Sick Man


"With a new book in hand, I’ve visited a lot of libraries lately, and I think the Ohio County Public Library is my all-time favorite. People are kind and welcoming, and deeply appreciate a visiting writer." -Jaimy Gordon, Lord of Misrule (National Book Award)

“I wanted the book launch to be at Lunch With Books because it is the best library book program in West Virginia and because Wheeling and the Wheeling area was centrally involved in so many of the firsts in West Virginia sports.” –Bob Barnett, Hillside Fields: A History of Sports in West Virginia

This blog is being discontinued.

This blog is being discontinued.
Please visit: www.ohiocountylibrary.org/calendar

Monday, March 25, 2013

Next: Joe Geiger



Please join us on Tuesday, April 2 at noon, when Joe Geiger will discuss Holding the Line, his book about the Battle of Allegheny Mountain and Confederate defense of the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike, 1861-62. Geiger is the Director of Archives and History at the West Virginia  Division of Culture & History. Lunch With Books programs are free and open to the public. Patrons are invited to bring a bag lunch and free beverages are served. Please call 304-232-0244 for more information.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Wheeling Hall of Fame


Dear Patrons,

The Wheeling Hall of Fame is honoring a new class of inductees on Saturday, April 20 at Wesbanco Arena.

The new class includes: Augustus Pollack, Rosemary Front, Marc Harshman, Stan Romanoski (sports), and G. Ogden Nutting.

Tickets to this event (doors open at 5:30 and dinner is at 6:30) are $25.00. You can purchase tickets directly from me. Please email lunchwithbooks@yahoo.com or call 304-232-0244 if interested.

We are currently searching for descendants of inductee, Augustus Pollack. Please contact me if you have any information.

Thanks and best regards,

Sean Duffy
Ohio County Public Library

March 26: The Roles of Women in the Civil War


In honor of Women’s History Month, Betsy Estilow of the National Museum of Civil War Medicine will return to Lunch With Books at the Ohio County Public Library on Tuesday,  March 26 at noon to discuss the activities and roles of women of the Union and the Confederacy during the Civil War. Soldier, politician, farmer, telegrapher—these were all jobs traditionally held by men until conflict engulfed our nation.  Women moved out of the home and into the workforce, working for the causes they supported.  The roles taken by these women transformed society and their stories tell an often overlooked tale of courage, sacrifice and devotion.

Lunch With Books programs are free and open to the public. Patrons are invited to bring a bag lunch and free beverages are served. Please call 304-232-0244 for more information.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

March 19 Letters of a Civil War Hospital Steward


Pittsburgher Alan West will be at Lunch With Books at the Ohio County Public Library on Tuesday, March 19 at noon to discuss his book, Remember Me, based on 230 letters from a Civil War hospital steward to his wife. Daniel McKinley Martin traveled from Pittsburgh to Wheeling to enlist in the 2nd Virginia Regiment, later known as the 5th West Virginia Cavalry. In the letters, he mentioned a number of Wheeling doctors and other notables. Lunch With Books programs are free and open to the public. Patrons are invited to bring a bag lunch and free beverages are served. Please call 304-232-0244 for more information.

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Meet Grania!


Meet Grace O'Malley, the bold “Sea Queen of Connacht,” aka, Granuaile, in person at Lunch With Books at the Ohio County Public Library on Tuesday, March 12 at noon. Portrayed by living historian Karen Vuranch and also known as “the Pirate Queen,” Grace O’Malley was a chieftain, a feared warrior, and the nemesis of the English Queen, Elizabeth. Lunch With Books programs are free and open to the public. Patrons are invited to bring a bag lunch and free beverages are served. Please call 304-232-0244 for more information.

Friday, March 1, 2013

In Wheeling Magazine Explores "Ethnic Wheeling"


In Wheeling Magazine Explores "Ethnic Wheeling"

The beautiful Spring 2013 edition of In Wheeling Magazine explores the splendid diversity of ethnic Wheeling. Make sure you pick up a copy of this well crafted and important issue, which is available at numerous locations around the Ohio Valley.

The issue includes a fascinating map of ethnic neighborhoods in Wheeling and the Ohio Valley, recipes for fantastic ethnic foods, and, as usual a series of wonderful photographs and other features. It's sure to become a treasured edition.

Historian Hal Gorby, whose energetic appearances at Lunch With Books at the Ohio County Public Library to talk about South Wheeling's Polish community and "Wheeling in the Progressive Era" were very popular and well attended, contributed articles on the Polish and Slavic communities. Wheeling National Heritage Area Corporation historian Rebekah Karelis contributed articles on the English, Scot-Irish, Greek, and Jewish communities. Our friend Margaret Brennan contributed the article on Wheeling's Irish, of course. In Wheeling's Dominick Cerrone wrote articles on the town's Italian, Lebanese (with Alex Nagem), and African American communities And yours truly was honored to be asked to contribute an article on Wheeling's large German community.

In Wheeling also included a very nice feature on both volumes of The Wheeling Family, which they graciously called a "must read" for "anyone interested in Wheeling's ethnic quilt."

Remember, if you decide to get a copy of either volume of The Wheeling Family at the Ohio County Public Library, $1.00 will be donated to the library for each copy purchased. The library still has a few in stock and they make a thoughtful Easter gift! 

Top Ten Lunch With Books Programs

Program; Presenter; Attendance; Date

1. SAENGERFEST; Eintracht German Singing Society; 200; 07-17-10

2. A Lucky Child; Auschwitz Survivor Judge Thomas Buergenthal; 198; 03-04-11

3. Fashion Show; Civil War 150; 194; 11-20-11

4. Ruanaidh; Art Rooney, Jr. and Jim O'Brien; 168; 06-15-10

5. Follow the River; James Alexander Thom; 160; 06-05-08

6. Warwood Memories; 157; 12-18-12

7. The Quiet Man Pub Reading; 150; 08-30-12

8. Wheeling Then and Now; Sean Duffy; 146; 09-07-10

9. Bloch Brother Tobacco; Stuart Bloch; 131; 04-27-10

10. Reasons to Believe; Dr. Scott Hahn; 126; 08-21-07

Book Discussion Groups

The Ohio County Public Library facilitates book discussion groups for both young adults and adults. Currently, the OCPL offers two adult groups, which meet on the first Monday and third Thursday of each month.

In addition to its own growing collection, the OCPL has access to the book discussion collection of the West Virginia Library Commission.

To join or form a book discussion group, or for more information, please call 304-232-0244.

Meeting of the Minds Philosophy Group

The Meeting of the Minds Philosophic Inquiry Forum is facilitated by David Weimer. The group meets virtually every Tuesday at 6 PM. Call the library for meeting room locations.

For more information, visit www.firstknowthyself.org/m&mphilosophy.htm or contact group organizer, David Weimer, at 740 526-0985 or by email at dwwweimer@comcast.net..