Washington County Library will host three local authors this year as part of its annual Winter Reads Program.

Patrice Johnson will visit Hardwood Creek Library in Forest Lake on Saturday, January 20 at 2 p.m. Johnson, author of “Land of 10,000 Plates,” will share recipes and stories from the expanse of Minnesota’s food traditions.

Emma Törzs will visit Oakdale Library on Monday, February 5 at 6 p.m. Törzs is a writer, teacher, and translator based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her debut novel “Ink Blood Sister Scribe” is a tale of familial loyalty and betrayal and a Good Morning America Book Club pick.

Lou Raguse will visit Wildwood Library on Monday, February 12 at 6:30 p.m. Raguse is an award-winning journalist from KARE 11 TV who released his first true crime book “Vanished in Vermillion: The Real Story of South Dakota's Most Infamous Cold Case” in 2023.

Winter Reads occurs in January and February each year with the goal of encouraging reading and community for adults. Participants read books and then submit reviews for a chance to win prizes. The first review will earn a cozy hat this year, and each one after enters the reviewer into a grand prize drawing for a book bundle.

More information is available on the library’s website: WashCoLib.org/WinterReads