2023 Programs
Listen, World!
Tuesday, June 13 | 7:00 – 8:30 PM | Oak View Room
At thirty-five, Elsie Robinson feared she’d lost it all. Reeling from a scandalous divorce in 1917, she had no means to support herself and her chronically ill son. She dreamed of becoming a writer and was willing to sacrifice everything for this goal, even swinging a pickaxe in a gold mine to pay the bills. When the mine shut down, she moved to the Bay Area. Armed with moxie and samples of her work, she barged into the offices of the Oakland Tribune and was hired on the spot. She went on to become a nationally syndicated columnist and household name whose column ran for over thirty years and garnered more than twenty million readers.
Told in cinematic detail by bestselling author Julia Scheeres and award-winning journalist Allison Gilbert, Listen, World! is the inspiring story of a timeless maverick, capturing what it means to take a gamble on self-fulfillment and find freedom along the way.
New York Times bestselling author Julia Scheeres will be in conversation with Martha Ross, a Walnut Creek native and features writer for the Mercury News and East Bay Times at the Walnut Creek Library on June 13th at 7 PM.
Program sponsors are East Bay Times, Friends of the Walnut Creek Library, and Minuteman Press Lafayette.
NOTE – Masks for ages 2 and older are encouraged. Thank you for helping us protect each other and our community!

Live! From the Library, presented by the Walnut Creek Library Foundation, features free public lectures, literary events, and cultural programs at the Walnut Creek and Ygnacio Valley libraries. Program sponsors are the East Bay Times, Friends of the Walnut Creek Library, and Minuteman Press, Lafayette. Programming is also made possible by donations to the Foundation’s Annual Fund. View past programs on our Video page. Contra Costa TV airs past programs Sundays at 8 p.m. Visit their website for channel info.
* Special accommodations require 72 hours advance notice.
The views and opinions expressed in any program are those of the speaker/persons and do not reflect the views of the Walnut Creek Library Foundation.
Program sponsors:
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Past Events
Unraveling with Peggy Orenstein
Chinese in Napa Valley: The Forgotten Community That Built Wine Country with John McCormick
One Singular Sensation: The Power and Passions of American Musical Theatre with Beth Wynstra
2022 Events
Who Could Ask for Anything More? with Dulais Rhys
Tuesday, December 13
Frida in America: The Impact of Place with Celia Stahr
Tuesday, November 1
Technically Food with Larissa Zimberoff
Tuesday, October 11
The Climate Crisis and Our Parks and Open Spaces
Tuesday, April 12
An Evening with Author Elise Hooper
Tuesday, March 8
Rachel Howzell Hall: A Woman of Mysteries
Tuesday, February 8
2021 Past Events
The Bounty
Wednesday, November 10
Broadway’s Golden Age: The Making of an American Art Form, 1927-1964
October 6, 2021
Why We Swim with author Bonnie Tsui
June 9, 2021
Showing Up Boldly: The Political and Organizing History of Black Women
May 12, 2021
Art & Algae: Journey Into The Curious World of Seaweed
April 14, 2021
California: Of Peril and Stewardship
March 17, 2021
SUCCESSFUL AGING: The Power and Potential of Our Lives
Dr. Daniel Levitin in conversation with founding Grateful Dead member Bob Weir
January 13, 2021
Visit our video page for past Live! from the Library videos.