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    Adventures in Beachcombing Presented by Shea Alltmont

    Main Library Auditorium

    Beach glass, fossils, pottery and rocks are among the treasures waiting to be discovered along the shores of Lake Erie. This presentation will show beach enthusiasts, treasure hunters, and people new to beachcombing where and how to find these wonders, how to identify them and how easy it is for everyone of all ages to […]

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    The Red House (1947)

    Main Library Auditorium

    Both Edward G. Robinson and Dame Judith Anderson are on the list of The American Film Institute’s all-time best villains. They play a brother and sister who live on a farm and have an adopted teenage daughter. They also have a secret: a haunted house in their nearby woods. Other characters become involved in what […]

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    The Best Haiku International Anthology

    Main Library Auditorium

    Did you know Ernest Hemingway, Jack Kerouac and Richard Wright wrote small? Writing coach Steve FitzGerald will discuss new and old forms of "small" writing, including traditional and American haiku, vignettes, Aesop's Fables, flash fiction, micropoetry and parables. He'll lead the audience through the writing of two haiku -- that based on previous group efforts […]

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    The Girl Who Walked on Ice

    Main Library Auditorium

    On Lake Erie’s secluded Sandy Stone Island, Sarah, a woman in her thirties, remains bound to the island by an unshakable phobia born from a tragic accident in her youth. Winter envelops the island as Sarah’s estranged sister, Alice, begins sending cryptic text messages, stirring memories of the day a storm forever altered their lives. […]

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    Vicksburg: The Campaign That Saved America Presented by Steve Pettyjohn

    Main Library Auditorium

    Despite many efforts, only one man was able to wage a campaign during the Civil War that could be given the title “Napoleonic” based on its operational daring, speed, courage, complexity, innovation and results. The man was Ulysses S. Grant; the campaign, Vicksburg. Using original photographs, presenter Steve Pettyjohn follows the battles of Vicksburg where […]

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    Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America

    Main Library Auditorium

    The Devil in the White City draws the reader into the enchantment of the Guilded Age, with a supporting cast of real-life characters, including Buffalo Bill, Theodore Dreiser, Susan B. Anthony, Thomas Edison, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, and others. Larson’s gifts as a storyteller are magnificently displayed in this rich narrative of a master builder, a […]

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    Inherit the Wind (1960) based on the play Inherit the Wind (1955) by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee

    Main Library Auditorium

    We're kicking off this season of From Page to Screen with Inherit the Wind—a powerful courtroom drama that felt especially timely to include, as 2025 marks the 100th anniversary of the real-life Scopes "Monkey" Trial on which it’s based. Released in 1960 and directed by Stanley Kramer, the film dramatizes the clash between science and […]

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    Fractured Foundations: A History of Mental Health in America Presented by Libbey Pelaia-Krumhansl

    Main Library Auditorium

    From asylums and outdated diagnoses to today’s growing conversations around healing and care, Fractured Foundations looks at how mental health has been understood and treated throughout American history. We’ll explore the cultural beliefs, systems and policies that have shaped the mental health landscape and talk about where we go from here - toward a future […]

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    Leave Her to Heaven (1945)

    Main Library Auditorium

    A socialite from Boston (Gene Tierney) meets a prominent novelist (Cornel Wilde) on a train heading for New Mexico. They get married and spend lots of time in the sunny outdoors. The film was shot in rich technicolor and earned cinematographer Leon Shamroy an Academy Award. A film noir in color? Ironically, the bright technicolor […]

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    2025 Schools and Library Funding: What Does it Mean for Lakewood? Presented by Dr. Christina Collins with James Crawford, Kent Zeman, and Steven Ast

    Main Library Auditorium

    If you're wondering how new state and federal laws are affecting education and libraries in Lakewood, you're not alone. Our community forum features keynote speaker, Dr. Christina Collins, who leads Honesty for Ohio Education, a grassroots nonprofit group dedicated to promoting understanding of public education policy and civic issues. Dr. Collins will be joined by […]

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    The Music and History of the West African Kora. Presented by Sean Gaskell

    Main Library Auditorium

    Sean Gaskell has had extensive instruction from masters in both Gambia and Senegal on the kora, a 21-stringed West African harp. Traditionally played by oral historians known as Griots, many songs featured on the kora preserve an 800-year history dating back to the founding of the Mande empire. Audience members will learn how the kora […]

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    28th Annual Manhattan Short Film Festival

    Main Library Auditorium

    Join cinephiles around the world for a unique event. 100,000 film lovers in over 500 cities across six continents will gather for one reason… to view and vote on the Finalist Films eligible for the 2026 Oscars.  Free and open to the public. Watch the trailer and learn more at manhattanshort.com   Saturday, September 27, 2025 […]

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