East Palestine Library receives grant to purchase classic books

EAST PALESTINE -- East Palestine Memorial Public Library is one of two Ohio libraries to receive a grant for a 50-volume set of American classics.
The recently published volumes are part of The Library of America series of American literature and history.
Carnegie Corporation of New York, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Library of America and American Library Association have joined forces in the Millennium Project for Public Libraries, a $1 million public-private partnership.
Lisa Rohrbaugh, East Palestine library director, said the volumes include works by authors such as John Steinbeck and Henry James, and will boost the library's growing collection of classic fiction, poetry and essays. She applied for the grant last summer.
Savings: With the grants, East Palestine and Oberlin libraries will pay $250 for the books, which are valued at nearly $1,800, Rohrbaugh said. The awards to 293 urban, suburban and rural public libraries are part of the first of two rounds of the project, NEH chairman William Ferris said.