Little Free Library - Forest Ave & Keeney Street, Evanston Walking along Forest Avenue in Evanston the other day we came across this very cute Little Free Library packed with books. Plus, it was in the front yard of a very cool looking old house. Bonus 🙂 Keep circulating the books! Love all things literary?... Continue Reading →
Being one of the great cities of the world, many novels have been set in Chicago. This is the fourth of a series looking at how the city has been portrayed/described in novels. A classic of muckraking journalism turned into fiction, Upton Sinclair's The Jungle led to a slew of public interest in food safety... Continue Reading →
Born June 7, 1917 in Topeka, Kansas, Gwendolyn Brooks came to Chicago at six weeks old, her family bringing her to the city as part of the Great Migration. For the rest of her life, her identity and her work would be greatly influenced by Chicago. Brooks attended Forestville Elementary School, going on to Hyde... Continue Reading →
ANOTHER CHICAGO MAGAZINE Founded in 1977 as a vehicle for University of Illinois at Chicago Circle graduate creative writing students, Another Chicago Magazine published 54 print issues, going completely online after their 2016 issue. They were published as a part of Left Field Press, then became a subsidiary of indie publisher Curbside Splendor, and are... Continue Reading →
Margaret Anderson's apartment - 837 W. Ainslie, Uptown A little while back we profiled Margaret Anderson's influential literary magazine, The Little Review. What I didn't realize was just how close the apartment she started it in is to where we live, so we headed over the other day to check it out. The apartment building... Continue Reading →
Chicago Publishers: Featherproof Books One of the aspects of Chicago's literary world that we haven't delved into yet is publishers. What better way than to highlight local independent Featherproof Books? Started in March 2005 by Jonathan Messinger and Zach Dodson, Featherproof's website states that they publish "strange and beautiful fiction and nonfiction and post-, trans-,... Continue Reading →
Carl Sandburg's home - 4646 N. Hermitage, Ravenswood Other than neighborhood walks and short drives we haven't left the house for weeks. What better time to visit some Chicago literary landmarks? Yesterday we took a drive to Carl Sandburg's charming home in Ravenswood. Originally from Galesburg, Illinois, Sandburg moved to the second story apartment in... Continue Reading →
Growing up a fairly privileged kid in the Western Suburbs, it wasn't until my sophomore year of high school that it became very clear my experience was not the norm. In grade school my teachers were always talking about how bad off people had it in other countries (the common refrain was, "Eat your food,... Continue Reading →
Being one of the great cities of the world, many novels have been set in Chicago. This is the third of a series looking at how the city has been portrayed/described in novels. Published in 1932, Young Lonigan is the first book of a trilogy by James T. Farrell, charting the life of William "Studs"... Continue Reading →
CHICAGO REVIEW Since we're still unable to go out and about in the city, I thought we'd look at some local publications, beginning with Chicago Review. Started by two grad students at the The University of Chicago in 1946, the magazine has been publishing contemporary poetry, fiction, and criticism ever since, releasing its latest issue... Continue Reading →
