Anyone who’s joined a beginners’ writers workshop knows the difficulty of reviewing prose that is nowhere near polished. It’s awkward, stressful even, trying to devise cogent thoughts about art that […]
When I think of webcams, I can’t help but think of Logitech with their ubiquitous C920 and its distinctive rectangular shape. But since COVID, there has been a lot more […]
One of the many gifts of Vincent Francone’s new anthology of Chicago stories, Open Heart Chicago, is learning what it’s like to wander around Marquette Park while tripping on acid. […]
The Fountain By David Scott Hay Whiskey Tit Jasper P. Duckworth is a critic in an alternate universe Chicago for Chicago Shoulders, a New City-like (or, if you will, Third […]
After spending hours with Super Mario Maker and its Nintendo Switch Sequel, I was hoping we’d get spin-offs for other Nintendo games, like a Metroid Maker or Legend of Zelda […]
Spoon River America: Edgar Lee Masters and the Myth of the American Small Town By Jason Stacy University of Illinois Press It’s ironic that Spoon River Anthology—perhaps the most famous […]
Dark Black by Sam Weller Hat & Beard Press One of the opening paragraphs of Sam Weller’s short story “All the Summer Before Us” is this: “We were eighteen, me […]
Midwest Futures By Phil Christman Belt Publishing The Midwest is a deeply mysterious place to the coastal essayists, pundits, and politicians. Rarely visiting, save to write clunky closed factory and […]
Note: Jean K. Carney will discuss Blackbird Blues at the Seminary Co-Op Bookstore (5751 S Woodlawn Avenue) on Thursday, January 16, at 6 p.m. Blackbird Blues; by Jean K. Carney Bedazzled […]
Saturday Night Sage by Noah C. Lekas Blind Owl Reviewed by Carr Harkrader In Noah Lekas’ new poetry collection, Saturday Night Sage, Buddha’s divine path is paved over with Wisconsin […]
The World of Juliette Kinzie: Chicago before the Fire Ann Durkin Keating University of Chicago Press, 280 pages, $27.50 When 27-year-old Juliette Kinzie settled with her husband John, the local […]
Chicago Treasure by Larry Broutman, Rich Green, and John Rabias Lake Claremont Press Is Chicago a fairy-tale city? Wait a minute. I’ve asked that before. But it’s a question worth […]