The Long Walk Starring: Cooper Hoffman as Ray Garraty David Jonsson as Peter McVries And Mark Hamill as the Major Directed by: Francis Lawrence Reviewed by: Alex Huizar The Long Walk is directed by Francis Lawrence who gave us films such as I Am Legend (2007), Water for Elephants (2011), and the last three Hunger Games and their prequels (2013-present). He continues with his dystopian world of films with The Long Walk. The Long Walk takes place in an alternate dystopian world where the United States has a totalitarian military regime and is trying to survive a devasting Civil War, and suffering an economic depression, to counter this the regime comes up with an annual event known as The Long Walk to inspire patriotism and work ethic. A total of fifty teenage boys (one from each state) are chosen and are given water and rations. The goal for them is to walk at least 3 miles per hour, if they fall below that they are given three warnings before they are executed on the spot until only one remains. The survivor receives a cash prize and one thing they desire to have. Francis does a great job creating tension throughout the film, you never know who is going to bite the bullet next and for what reason. The two main leads do a great job at creating this friendship and rapport with each other that you hope in some way they both survive this event. Mark Hamill does an excellent job as the evil Major who oversees The Long Walk. My only complaint with the film, as you continue to watch it, that your belief with these teenage boys who are continuously walking with no breaks whatsoever have the physical ability to trek across the country without slowing down. Other than that it is a great film and should be viewed. This is one of my favorite films of 2025. I give The Long Walk 4 out of 5 stars. Call your local library to reserve a copy today. Congrats to our puzzle winners January was a challenging month due to the weather. We cancelled or postponed many programs. One program that was not cancelled was the puzzle challenge (winners are pictured on the right). One the positive side, we have found it to be good reading weather. Our circulation broke records in January. More people are checking out books and magazines through the Libby app than ever before. Audiobooks are very popular, and magazines fly off the digital shelf.
2 FEBRUARY 2026 NEW RELEASES By Robin Vail A new month-plenty of new books! And a lot of free advice like How to be Rich Old Lady, your guide to easy investing and building wealth by Amanda Holden. Or Eat Your Ice Cream: Six simple rules for a long and healthy life by Ezekiel Emanuel. JK Lasser’s Your Income Tax 2026 may come in handy and Oprah Winfrey’s Enough: Your health, your weight and what it’s like to be free talks about biology and weight control. J D Robb is back with Stolen in Death and C J Box has a new Joe Pickett book Crossroads coming soon. We have new books by Brad Thor (Cold Zero), Mary Kubica (It’s Not Her), Catherine Coulter (Heir of Whitestone) and a new Jesse Stone book Big Shot by Robert B Parker with help from Christopher Farnsworth. Kids will like The Pigeon Won’t Say the ABCs by Mo Willem and Unsettling Salad by Aaron Reynolds. Is it Spring? by Kevin Henkes is about how we are all feeling right about now. Stop in and see what’s new at the Oak Harbor Public Library.
3 FEBRUARY 2026 HAPPINESS IS... The Friends of the Oak Harbor Public Library supports the 1000 Books Before Kindergarten program. Reading to a child is beneficial on so many levels. Reading to preschoolers prepares them for school by expanding their vocabulary and improving their brain development. The 1000 Books Before Kindergarten is available through Beanstack, an app that helps keep track of reading. Reading logs are also available at the Oak Harbor Public Library. Once a child has completed the 1000 books, let us know. We will dedicate a book to your child. The Friends will gift a book to the child. And the child’s photo will go up on our window with all the other winners. A New Library Card
4 FEBRUARY 2026 By Ann Chio
5 FEBRUARY 2026 LAST WORD By Kathy Huffman A Journey Through Oak Habor’s History (Part 2) By the early 1830’s the lure of the forest and its riches overshadowed the hazards of the Great Black Swamp. Yet, travel was treacherous and almost impossible at best. The swampy ground consisted of thick clayish mud that would stick to any shoe or wheel. Roads, if you could call them that, were few and far between with most being merely glorified Native American trails which followed higher ground. In 1811 an Act of Congress resulted in the creation of The Western Reserve & Maumee Pike, known today as Fremont Pike/U.S. 20. The log plank road ran from Perrysburg to Fremont. Construction began in 1825 and was completed in 1828. It was the main road across the Swamp and was known as the “Mud Road”. The 31-mile road had 31 taverns and 31 mud holes. For those wishing to journey to Hartford they would travel the Mud Road to Woodville then traverse through the Swamp by following the banks of the Portage River. An exert from an early settler’s journal wrote I traveled the swamp by way of “The Pike” (the Maumee & Western Reserve Road). It took 12 days to get from Perrysburg to Woodville. Never would have thought it, but it sure was tough going with all the mud holes, fallen trees, and tangled vines. My wagon just kept getting stuck and my horse, I swear, found every mud hole there was. Just a mess. I came during the summer. They say it’s even worse in the spring and not that great in the winter. Development of what would become known as Ottawa County was slow with land not available for sale until 1820. The first landowners were usually either the government or land speculators. Those who did come to settle faced a rugged existence of hardship and disease. In October of 1832, Joseph Wardlow, a land speculator, staked a claim on the north bank of the Portage River. It was not until April 1835 that the land was plotted as the Village of Hartford (later known as Oak Harbor). By 1837 he had begun to sell his holdings to adventurous individuals. A sizable portion of the land was purchased by Adolphus Kraemer, a man from Lucas County, and in 1838 he moved his family to Hartford. Kraemer had a vision and quickly became the driving force behind the improvements and developments of the newly formed Village. An industrious man, Kraemer would later be known as the “Father of Oak Harbor”. A few of Kraemer’s accomplishments included building the first sawmill on the Portage River. In 1839 he was appointed Postmaster of Ottawa (Hartford) Post Office which was said to have been the first post office in Ottawa County. Aware of the importance of local news, he hauled his printing press by wagon from Toledo and established the Ottawa County Exponent which became a reliable source of news for both the people of Hartford and the County. Digitized copies of the Exponent can be found on the Oak Harbor Public Library’s website under the Local History Museum menu. To avoid confusion with another town named Hartford, the Village found it necessary to change its name. On March 27, 1863, the Village officially changed its name to Oak Harbor. Kraemer was a major lobbyist behind the effort and was given the key credit for creating the name Oak Harbor. For further information on Adolphus Kraemer visit the Local History Museum. Slowly, the Village of Oak Harbor began to take shape. Located on the eastern fringe of the Great Black Swamp, Ottawa County was abundant with several tree species and Oak Harbor lay within that pristine promise land. Soon settlers began to arrive to carve out their own little niche and harvest the wealth the Swamp had to offer. The third instalment of A Journey Through Oak Harbor’s History can be found in the March edition of the OHPL newsletter.
6 FEBRUARY 2026 OAK HARBOR PUBLIC LIBRARY 147 W. MAIN ST OAK HARBOR OH 43449 419-898-7001 Oakharborpubliclibrary.org ohpl@seolibraries.org
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