Ohio is not that far from New York... two or three states away, depending how you drive. But you wouldn't know it by talking to any native New Yorker. It might as well be Iowa, or Idaho, they all kind of sound the same. "Flyover country."

Ohio is considered part of the Midwest, though it seems strange to me to be lumped in with North Dakota and Missouri, places I've never been. Ohio is the huge metal buckle of the rust belt, a swath of former industrial cities that surround the Great Lakes. I hail from the rubber capitol of the world, and my grandfathers worked for competing tire manufacturers.

And you know what? There are hundreds, thousands of expat Ohioans in New York City. I mean I bet there are. We don't go around bragging about it, even though we totally could.

Fiction

• The Coast of Akron by Adrienne Miller: a fantastical parallel-universe kind of Akron in which the wealthy Haven family has fallen from grace.
• The Broom of the System by David Foster Wallace: there is an even more weirdly unrecognizable near-future version of Cleveland (it abuts the Great Ohio Desert, or G.O.D.) in DFW's first novel.
• Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson.
• Other writers from the Buckeye state: Ambrose Bierce, O. Henry, Toni Morrison, Dawn Powell, James Thurber.
• Cartoonist Bill Watterson.

Poetry

• Hart Crane, Rita Dove, Nikki Giovanni, Langston Hughes... or log in to Columbia Grangers and do an Advanced Search with Ohio as the subject.

A map of literary Ohio.

Nonfiction

• Ian Frazier is an Ohio to NYC transplant and a former NYPL Cullman Fellow! He writes for the New Yorker, and has published numerous books of essays and longer nonfiction.
• Harvey Pekar wrote autobiographical comic books in collaboration with artists like R. Crumb and others.
• All the Way Home: Building a Family in a Falling-Down House by David Giffels: documents the restoration of a Gilded Age mansion by the journalist and former writer for Beavis and Butt-Head.
• Bags That Rock: Knitting on the Road with Kelley Deal: Listen to the Breeders while you knit.
• The Ohio Knitting Mills by Steven Tatar with Denise Grollmus: sweater patterns and historical materials from the archives of the Ohio Knitting Mills, producer for many major department stores in the mid-20th century.
• More Ohio Social Life and Customs and Ohio History & Culture - the auto industry, the Browns, Soap Box Derby, Hopewell culture...

Music

Cleveland is home to the The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame & Museum; according to legend DJ Alan Freed first popularized the term "rock & roll" there and it was the site of the first concert. For more, try Hang On Sloopy: The History of Rock & Roll in Ohio by Nick Talevski. Some famous (and infamous) musicians from Ohio include:

• The Black Keys
• Bone Thugs-n-Harmony
• The Breeders
• Chrissie Hynde
• The Cramps
• Devo
• Guided By Voices
• Marilyn Manson
• The National
• The O'Jays
• Pere Ubu
• RJD2
• Screamin' Jay Hawkins
• Trent Reznor

Ohio is a Piano - map of 88 counties that you can play like an instrument.

Movies

• American Splendor - also a comic book series written by the aforementioned Harvey Pekar.
• Howard the Duck - really just included because of what may be the best library subject heading ever? "Ducks -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Drama"
• Major League - for all you Charlie Sheen/Tribe fans out there
• Stranger than Paradise - A journey from NYC → Cleveland → Florida, directed by Akronite Jim Jarmusch
• Welcome to Collinwood - ensemble crime comedy caper
  

Television

• The Drew Carey Show
• Ghoulardi (also known as P.T. Anderson's dad; see Wikipedia entry)
• Glee
• Hot in Cleveland
• WKRP in Cincinnati

Food

Sauerkraut Balls, Cincinnati Chili, Buckeye Candy, "pop."

Travel

• Forbes Travel Guide: Southern Great Lakes
  
• Lost Ohio: More Travels into Haunted Landscapes, Ghost Towns, and Forgotten Lives by Randy McNutt
• Ohio Curiosities: Quirky Characters, Roadside Oddities, & Other Offbeat Stuff by Sandra Gurvis
  
• Ohio WPA Guides

Ohio Society of New York, I know you're out there. What else would you add to this list?

Do you enjoy The Ticketless Traveler? You might also like State By State: A Panoramic Portrait of America and Book Lust to Go: Recommended Reading for Travelers, Vagabonds, and Dreamers.