National Book Festival to feature these two Ohio books

Zoom in: The Ohio Center for the Book has been making our state's "Great Reads" selections since 2002. It chose "Settling Ohio" as the title for adult readers.

• The essays, written for academics and a wider audience, emerged from a conference at Ohio University.
• It tells the nuanced history of the people and forces that shaped Ohio, tackling topics as wide-ranging as Johnny Appleseed and the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks.

Between the lines: "You Gotta Meet Mr. Pierce!: The Storied Life of Folk Artist Elijah Pierce," by Chiquita Mullins Lee and Carmella Van Vleet, with illustrations by Jennifer Mack-Watkins, is in the children's selection.

• The picture book is based on the true story of a Columbus barber and son of a slave who became world-renowned for his primitive woodcarvings.