Page Count

If you're listening to this episode near its release date, I want to encourage you to check out the National Book Festival coming this Saturday, August 22. We'll be gathering with the other affiliate Centers for the Book in Washington, DC. In addition to all our booths celebrating our states' and territories' literary heritage and Great Reads from Great Places selections, there will be over 80 featured authors at the Festival with many of those panels being livestreamed and recorded. Find out more at loc.gov/bookfest.
For this episode, Page Count welcomes a special guest host, Jen Jumba, Manager of the Popular Department at Cleveland Public Library, home of the Ohio Center for the Book. Jen has a wealth of library experience including in marketing and in readers advisory; is an adjunct faculty member of the Library Information Science department at San Jose State University; and has moderated author panels for Library Journal. Jen also hosts her own podcast, Storied Account, "where writers share their craft," available wherever you listen to podcasts.
Jen was in conversation with the author of our 2026 Great Reads from Great Places Adult Selection, The Musical Mozinskis by Susan Petrone which tells the story of a family of gifted (in more ways that one) musicians who go on to have their own musical television variety show in the 1970s with the ups and downs and family struggles that entails.
Susan Petrone is also the author of the The Heebie-Jeebie Girl, The Super Ladies, Throw Like a Woman, and A Body at Rest, which won a bronze medal for regional fiction from the Independent Publishers Book Awards. The Super Ladies was a General Fiction finalist in Foreword Reviews’ 2018 Book of the Year Awards. Petrone's short fiction has been published by Glimmer Train, Muse, Conclave, Cleveland Review, and Whiskey Island. Her short story “Monster Jones Wants to Creep You Out” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her non-fiction has appeared in CoolCleveland, Belt magazine, and ESPN.com. She is also one of the co-founders and a former president of Literary Cleveland.
IN THIS EPISODE
Storied Account (Jen Jumba's podcast)
National Book Festival (including links to streaming videos for authors)
SusanPetrone.com: Susan Petrone's official website
Cleveland Reads: An Upcoming Book About a Musical Family (An interview with Susan Petrone by Leon Bibb of WKYC)
Tiger Beat (Wikipedia article)
The Gene Carroll Show (News 5 Cleveland video)
Chuck Berry doing a version of the "duck walk" in a 1956 performance (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame video)

For this episode Page Count welcomes a special guest host, Annisha Jeffries. Annisha is the Youth & Community Outreach Manager at Cleveland Public Library, the home of the Ohio Center for the Book. She has extensive expertise in children’s literature, including having served as chair of the Caldecott Committee and the Norman A. Sugarman Children’s Biography Award. She’s also the host of her own podcast, Reading in the Middle, dedicated to exploring middle-grade books.
Annisha was in conversation with the author and illustrator of our 2026 Great Reads from Great Places Young Readers selection. Great Reads from Great Places are titles chosen by each of the 56 affiliate Centers for the Book around the country to represent their state or territory at the National Book Festival in Washington, DC. This year’s festival takes place Saturday, August 22. We’ll link to information about the Festival in our Show Notes.
This year’s pick for young readers is Once a Wasteland: From Toxic Dump to National Park written by Diane Muldrow and illustrated by Amy Jindra Hodgson.
Diane Muldrow is the author of the New York Times-bestselling Everything I Need to Know I Learned From a Little Golden Book series and a prolific author of children’s books. Her picture book We Planted a Tree was a 2010 Chicago Public Library Best of the Best selection. She is a retired children’s book editor and a proud Ohio University graduate. She learned early that natural surroundings aren’t to be taken for granted, and that people can make a difference in their communities. Diane has visited national parks all over the country and the world.
IN THIS EPISODE
Reading in the Middle podcast (blog)
Diane Muldrow (official webpage)
Amy Jindra Hodgson (official webpage)
Once a Wasteland: From Toxic Dump to National Park (publisher's webpage)
Announcement of the 2026 Great Reads from Great Places (Ohio Center for the Book)
Cuyahoga Valley National Park: Nature & Science (webpage)
Provides links to databases of the plants and animals that call the National Park home.
US Environmental Protection Agency: Superfund (webpage)
Learn more about the Superfund program and search for Superfund sites "where you live"
LibraryThing List of the Great Reads from Great Places (2002-2025)

This week, we are sharing an historic conversation among Ohio comic book royalty: Prolific, award-winning creators Brian Michael Bendis and Marc Andreyko. The conversation was moderated by Mike Sangiacomo, one of the Founders of the Siegel and Shuster Society. Recorded live on July 11, 2026, at the Cleveland Public Library as part of the weekend-long Icons Fest held in conjunction with the Icons in Ink: The Jewish Comics Experience exhibit at the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage (on display until August 23, 2026).
Growing up together in Northeast Ohio, Bendis and Andreyko first teamed up as friends to create the true crime comic book series Torso, the story of the "Torso Murders" in Cleveland in the 1930s when Eliot Ness was the city’s Safety Director. Their wide-ranging conversation included stories about their early collaboration and the on-going challenge of bringing Torso to the screen, their storied careers in the comic book and entertainment industries, and Cleveland Public Library's role in Bendis's decision to go to DC to write for Superman.
Brian Michael Bendis was born in Cleveland, took classes at Cleveland Institute of Art, and did work for several Cleveland-area newspapers and magazines in his early career. He has co-created characters like Miles Morales, Jessica Jones, and dozens of others that populate the Marvel, DC and all-new original universes. He is a New York Times bestseller and has won numerous awards for his work, including multiple Eisner Awards and a Peabody for Jessica Jones. Bendis was Executive Producer of the Academy Award winning hit Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Bendis’ fabled move to DC Entertainment after nearly two decades at Marvel made international headlines, making his DC debut in the landmark Action Comics 1000. Bendis continues to be a prolific creator, producer,
Marc Andreyko grew up in Mentor, graduated from Mentor High School, and co-created the character Kate Spencer/Manhunter for DC and was the original writer on Wonder Woman ’77. He has written comics for Dark Horse, DC, IDW, Image, and Marvel.
Michael Sangiacomo is a long-time writer of articles on Superman and the comics industry for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. In 2006, he penned an article that urged Cleveland to embrace the creators of Superman, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, and this led to the creation of the Siegel and Shuster Society of which he was a founding board member. Sangiacomo has also taught comic book history at Case Western Reserve University and is a comics writer himself.
In This Episode:
Brian Michael Bendis
Jinxworld: Brian Michael Bendis (official site)
The Peabody Awards ceremony where Bendis was called “the original hero” for his creation of Jessica Jones
‘I’d Have Been a Fool Not to Try Everything’: PW Talks with Brian Michael Bendis (Publishers Weekly, 2026)
Marc Andreyko
DC Comics Press Release for Love Is Love (2016)
Marc Andreyko talks comic anthology Love Is Love (Entertainment Weekly, 2017)
Supergirl & Superman Unite Against Krypton’s Killers (ScreenRant.com, 2019)
Michael Sangiacomo
Cleveland, the True Birthplace of Superman (Smithsonian Magazine, 2010)
Cleveland Torso Murders
The Torso Killer: Cleveland’s Lingering Mystery from Cleveland Public Library
Cleveland Torso Murders (aka The Kingsbury Run Murders) from the Cleveland Police Museum
Torso Murders from Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
Siegel and Shuster Society (including information about the Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster Superman Plaza)
Telling Lies in America (film by writer Joe Eszterhas (who also grew up in Ohio) mentioned in the conversation)
Underexposed! The 50 Greatest Movies Never Made by Joshua Hall (find in a library) mentioned in the conversation and including David Fincher’s Ness based on Torso.

This week, we're highlighting children's authors from past Page Count episodes in recognition of that energizing and exhausting tradition of the Summer Reading Club. In our introduction, we look at Ohio's role in the beginnings of the "Summer Reading Club" in the 1890s and then talk about some of our past episodes on children's book authors and illustrators.
Our featured "Backlist Pick" episode is our 2022 conversation with Tracy Subisak, the author and illustrator of Jenny Mei is Sad, our Great Reads from Great Places youth selection for that year.
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and an edited transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram or Facebook.

In the original episode, Brian Schoen, Ph.D., and Timothy G. Anderson, Ph.D., the editors of Settling Ohio: First Peoples and Beyond, discussed Ohio’s history, the inspiration for, and the genesis of Settling Ohio. Settling Ohio: First Peoples and Beyond was Ohio Center for the Book’s 2024 Great Reads from Great Places selection for adult readers and represented the state at the National Book Festival.  
Since that episode aired, the Moundbuilders Country Club golf course in Newark, Ohio, has been transformed into the Octagon Earthworks park by The Ohio History Connection. We've included some links below updating that important story.
We're also sharing some other Page Count episodes that talk about historical figures and events in American history as well as information about the fascinating Library of Congress project working on America's Time Capsule.
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and an edited transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram or Facebook.

Dr. Valentino Zullo explores the Cleveland-created superhero’s origin story in honor of Superman’s 85th birthday. Dr. Zullo and Laura discuss some of the first-ever Superman comics; Superman’s early focus on fighting social inequities vs. super villains; how creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster came to dream up the famous superhero; and more.
 
Since the original episode aired, Superman has come home to Ohio: James Gunn filmed major parts of Superman (2025) in Cleveland and Cincinnati; the Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster Superman Plaza has been unveiled in downtown Cleveland, Siegel and Shuster are featured in a current exhibit at the Maltz Museum, and the premiere of Supergirl in Cleveland will feature a weekend of events with Mariko Tamaki.
 
Dr. Zullo is now Assistant Professor of English and Co-Director of the Rust Belt Humanities Lab at Ursuline College. He is co-editor-in-chief of Rust Belt Studies and Associate Editor of the Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics. He co-founded the Get Graphic! comics discussion program at Cleveland Public Library and is a board member of the Siegel & Shuster Society.
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Twitter or on Facebook.

This summer, Page Count is settling down with a good beach read to take a hiatus—which means we’ll be bringing you some select episodes from our extensive backlist, complete with new introductions. First up is one of the first episodes ever produced by Page Count: The Ohio Literary Trail. Follow along as David Weaver, the former executive director of the Ohioana Library Association, and Betty Weibel, author of The Ohio Literary Trail: A Guide, discuss Ohio’s literary heritage and offer an audio tour of some of the notable literary sites found around the state.
 
As mentioned in this episode’s introduction, congratulations to Sonia Feldman on the publication of her debut novel. While the June 2 launch party at Loganberry Books is sold out, you can purchase a signed copy of Girl’s Girl here. Listen to Page Count’s interview with Feldman here.
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and an edited transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram or Facebook.

Page Count is pleased to share an episode of PASSAGES: On Morrison, a new podcast that follows Namwali Serpell on her book tour for ON MORRISON. This episode takes us to Columbus, Ohio, where Serpell was joined by Hanif Abdurraqib in the Ohio Celebrates Toni Morrison kickoff event to read and discuss the end of SONG OF SOLOMON. Serpell and Abdurraqib discuss this final passage, the challenges of adapting Morrison’s novels for film, the power of intentional ambiguity in writing, and the influence of African folk tales on Morrison’s work. 
 
You can buy Namwali Serpell’s ON MORRISON at this link and anywhere books are sold. 
PASSAGES: On Morrison is a Random House production. 
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and an edited transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram or Facebook.

It’s a podcast takeover! Five young writers—Moriah, Malikye, Victoria, Jordan, and Wilma—share poems and a story excerpt, all of which are about to be published in Lake Erie Ink’s 10th annual Teen Book Project. This year’s anthology is titled Lights, Camera, Action, a theme that speaks, in part, to the phenomenon of feeling seen in an online world.
 
To view the art and read all the writing in the anthology, purchase Lights, Camera, Action via Lake Erie Ink; at a local independent bookstore like Mac’s Backs, Loganberry, or Visible Voice; or at the book launch. The book launch for Lights, Camera, Action will take place Tuesday, May 19 at 6pm at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Branch of Cleveland Public Library and will feature contributor readings and light refreshments. Please RSVP here to attend.
 
Lake Erie Ink is a nonprofit organization providing creative expression opportunities and academic support to youth in the Greater Cleveland community, including writing workshops, camps, tutoring, school and community programs, and beyond. The organization supports a community where youth discover their voices, share ideas, and inspire each other as valued participants. Visit https://lakeerieink.org to learn more about programs for young writers; resources for students, teachers, and parents; and volunteer opportunities.
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and an edited transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram or Facebook.

Andre Norton is one of the pivotal figures in the history of science fiction and fantasy and remains eminently relevant for modern readers. She was a prolific writer, authoring more than 300 titles spanning a career from the 1930s to the 2000s. She was one of the earliest writers to create stories of a post-nuclear apocalyptic dystopia and works of post-humanism yet kept a thread of hope and optimism.
 
In her lifetime, Andre Norton was recognized by her readers and her peers as a towering figure, receiving a World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement and being named a Grandmaster by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association among other accolades. She was also the first writer to be invited to contribute to the Dungeons & Dragons universe. Sales of Norton’s  work in her lifetime rivalled George R. R. Martin, Arthur C. Clarke, and Edgar Rice Burroughs.
 
And yet, Andre Norton has become somewhat obscure, an unsung Ohio writer who flourished during her lifetime and deserves renewed attention. Today’s podcast episode will hopefully entice you to delve into her work and to help fulfill her final words: “I just don’t want to be forgotten.”
 
Don Boozer, Coordinator of the Ohio Center for the Book and Manager of the Literature Department at Cleveland Public Library, hosts this episode. He’s joined by Dr. Jeff Karem, a Professor of English at Cleveland State University, to illuminate the life and work and Andre Norton. Dr. Karem received his Ph.D. from Yale University, and his research and teaching focus on exploring the contributions of diverse regional and ethnic writers and works on 20th century American Literature.
 
To view photographs and documents relating to Norton, see this episode’s accompanying blog post, “The Imaginative History of Andre Norton.”
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and an edited transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram or Facebook.