Bestselling Author Patrick Ryan presents "Buckeye"

The Johann Fust Library Foundation is excited to present Patrick Ryan, best-selling author of the novel, Buckeye. Patrick will be joined in conversation by Nan Doyal. 

Set in a small town in Ohio, Buckeye tells the story of two couples whose fate intersects in one brief moment during the exuberant aftermath of the Allied victory in Europe. Margaret Salt, overjoyed in part because her husband, Felix, will be now returning home, shares a celebratory kiss with Cal Jenkins who works at the local hardware store. Cal is married to Becky, a spiritualist who can communicate with the dead. 

What begins as a chance encounter between Cal and Margaret, turns into a tangled, multi-generational family saga, set against the backdrop of a changing American society from the 1940s through the 1970s. 

Buckeye is historical fiction, but it is also a narrative of love, loss, and betrayal in marriage and family; an exploration of the power of secrets to both form and transform lives. In addition to the many accolades and positive reviews, Buckeye won the 2026 Ohio Book Award for Fiction. 

Patrick Ryan was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up on Merritt Island, Florida. He’s a graduate of Florida State University and Bowling Green State University’s Creative Writing Program in Ohio. He is the author of two story-collections: The Dream Life of Astronauts (long-listed for The Story Prize and named one of the Best Books of the Year by the St. Louis Times-Dispatch, LitHub, and Electric Literature) and Send Me; and three books for young adults: Saints of Augustine, In Mike We Trust and Gemini Bites. His work has also been included in The Best American Short Stories. He is a former associate editor of Granta, and is editor-at-large of One Story. 

Nan Doyal is a writer and publisher. She is a Johann Library Foundation Board Member and a frequent interviewer and facilitator in the Literary Series events. 

Advance event registration will open to our donors via an email invitation in late October, six weeks before the event. 

Shortly thereafter, registration will be open to all.