101 Books That Shaped Chicago
If you’ve ever wondered how Chicago got to be called “the Second City” or want to know who influenced this or that about the city then Chicago By The Book: 101 Stories That Shaped The CIty is for you. On Saturday morning March 9, The Friends’ and the Edgewater Library Branch hosted members of the Caxton Club who planned and edited the book. Chicago by the Book profiles landmark publications about Chicago from the past 170 years.
On hand to talk about the process for selecting the top 101 books that have helped define the city and its image were Caxton Club members Susan Rossen and John Chalmers, along with locally based author and book store owner, Nina Barrett, and Edgewater resident and author, Tim Lacy. In addition to talking about how the final 101 books were chosen, the panel highlighted some of the essays that accompany each of the book selections.
As you might expect books by some of Chicago’s most famous authors are included, such as Saul Bellow, Studs Terkel, Erik Larson, Frank Lloyd Wright, Ida B. Wells, Clarence Darrow and many more. Each title is the focus of an illustrated essay by a leading scholar, writer, or bibliophile, such as Ann Durkin Keating, Alex Kotlowitz, Toni Preckwinkle, Regina Taylor, Garry Wills, William Julius Wilson and others.
With an audience full of local bibliophiles, this program provoked a delightful discussion about the 101 books and the essayists who wrote about each title. The book was on sale at the event at a special price to attendees thanks to Nina Barrett, whose bookstore provided copies, and of course, Susan and John were delighted to autograph copies for those who purchased the book. The Edgewater Branch also had many of the books written about in the room for participants to browse through and check out and the Friends hosted a pop-up book sale of Chicago-themed books.
This morning event proved to be a perfect wakeup for everyone. By the way, Nina Barrett will be joining the Friends later this year for a program and discussion on her latest book, The Leopold and Loeb Files: An Intimate Look at One of America's Most Infamous Crimes (Agate Publishing). Watch our calendar for the exact date.