Ohio Stephen Markley Simon & Schuster Reviewed by Carr Harkrader Ohio, the debut novel by Stephen Markley, is a bumpy journey that doesn’t quite reach its destination. It starts with a funeral […]
The Capitol building in Washington DC is sometimes referred to as the People’s House; a great gathering place where the exchange of ideas (some new, some radical, some contradictory) is put forth […]
Chicago has had its share of dynamic duos: Adler and Sullivan, Jordan and Pippen, Bozo and Cooky, Moo and Oink… Less dynamic and more demonic were Chicago killers Nathan Leopold and Richard […]
One of the things I love about speculative literature is its ability to capture the emotional impact of real, plausible experiences through fantastic metaphors. It’s also just really fun to read. You […]
I have a secret, neither dark nor deep. Never have I ever smoked pot. You kids still call it pot, right? Marijuana is pejorative. Grass, Mary Jane, and reefer seem dated, evoking […]
Certain American States is peculiar. Catherine Lacey’s first short story collection has a similar feel to her last published book, the understated satire The Answers. With a subtle flair for corporate criticism […]
I met my good friend, Flats Slobnik—tuck pointer, softball shortstop, and professional Chicago everyman—at our favorite watering hole, Brzbchynski’s Tavern on Pulaski and Lower Wacker Drive. Karol Brzbchynski, a 300-pound ex-steelworker who […]
Do you know: The first gay rights advocacy group in the United States was formed in Chicago in 1924? There was a legally recognized same-sex marriage in Chicago in 1923? That Cab […]
Until very recently, I rode the Green Line to work every day. Occasionally, I would notice the billboards at a stop on the West Side were experiencing an advertising blitz, where one […]
When you hear a particularly eerie or scary story as a child, your consciousness is muddled, but your senses are heightened: you hear every creak and you wonder about every shadow on […]
Journalists love looking for America, and Dave Hoekstra—WGN radio host and author of The Camper Book: A Celebration of a Moveable American Dream—is as smitten as the rest. For the past two […]
Eating at my favorite Chinese restaurant always leaves me with a craving to create those delectable dishes myself. I’ve played around with stir-fries and sticky rice over the years—to varying levels of […]
