Join us for an eerie and illuminating evening with award-winning author Mira Ptacin as she reads from her genre-defying book The In-Betweens: The Spiritualists, Mediums, and Legends of Camp Etna. Part history, part memoir, and part metaphysical investigation, The In-Betweens uncovers a little-known Maine community of mediums, mystics, and metaphysical misfits, while exploring the liminal space between the seen and unseen. Author J. Courtney Sullivan praised Ptacin’s “curious, warm, nonjudgmental tone,” adding, “She’s funny, too.” The Wall Street Journal called the book “a powerful testimony to the human need for hope and meaning.” Whether you’re a skeptic, a believer, or simply intrigued by the unknown, this is a literary séance you won’t want to miss. No matter where you stand on the spectrum of belief, prepare for an evening that blurs the line between the living room and the beyond.

After the reading, Mira will host a Q&A with the audience.

About the Author: Mira Ptacin is the author of the award-winning memoir Poor Your Soul and the feminist exploration of spiritualism The In-Betweens. A journalist, activist, and educator, Mira’s writing appears in The New York Times, Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, Poets & Writers, The Atavist and more. She lives on Peaks Island and is currently the 2025-2026 Writer-in-Residence at Mechanics Hall, Portland, Maine. 

This program is inspired by this year's A Capital Read. A Capital Read, a “one book” community read project spearheaded by Lithgow Library, and sponsored by the Friends of Lithgow Library. We offer this program to:

• Deepen the appreciation for literature through reading, discussion, activities and events related to our chosen title
• Enhance the feeling of community in our diverse city, and
• Demonstrate the power of libraries to bring people together