Mt. Lebanon library adds free programs to fall authors’ series

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

This fall, Mt. Lebanon Public Library is expanding its authors’ series by adding four free programs. Since 2013, the library has presented a well-known author each year. Starting Sept. 20, the library’s four free programs include a local attorney who writes historical fiction, an investigative journalist and radio producer, a Pittsburgh foundation executive who ran the Philadelphia Inquirer, and two Norwegian sisters who study the science of memory.

Tickets must be purchased for the best-known author, Erik Larson, who will appear on April 29 in Mellon Auditorium. Individual tickets are $20 and VIP are $50. Mr. Larson’s bestselling books include “Devil and the White City,” “Dead Wake,” “In the Garden of the Beasts” and “Isaac’s Storm.”

All four of the free fall programs begin at 7 p.m. in the library at 16 Castle Shannon Blvd., Mt. Lebanon (15228).

Sept. 20 — Marie Benedict, a Pittsburgh attorney, is the author of two books, “The Other Einstein: A Novel” and “Carnegie’s Maid.”

Sept. 23 — Patrick Winn is an investigative journalist and author of “Hello, Shadowlands,” a book that detailed the black market for illegal narcotics such as methamphetamine in Southeast Asia. Since 2008, Mr. Winn has lived in Bangkok. He is the Asia correspondent for Public Radio International. He served as a consultant for an episode of Anthony Bourdain’s “Parts Unknown,” which was filmed in Myanmar.

Oct. 17 — Hilde and Ylva Ostby are sisters and the authors of “Adventures in Memory: The Science and Secrets of Remembering and Forgetting.” Hilde Ostby is the author of “Encyclopedia of Love and Longing,” a novel about unrequited love. She earned a master’s degree in the history of ideas from the University of Oslo. Ylva Ostby is a clinical neuropsychologist who researches the science of memory. Both women live in Norway.

Oct. 23 — Maxwell King is the author of “Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers.” Mr. King is the CEO of The Pittsburgh Foundation. From 1999 to 2008, he headed the Heinz Endowments and then served for two years as director of the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe. From 1990 to 1998, Mr. King was editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

For the Erik Larson lecture, tickets can be purchased at the library (or online at www.mtlebanonlibrary.org/speakerseries).

To register for the free events, either call the library at 412-531-1912 or register online at www.mtlebanonlibrary.org/484/Free-AuthorEvents.