Chicago History: Third World Press — “Strong and Black for 50 Years”
The poem was one of many recited by teenagers during the gala in October honoring the 50th anniversary of Chicago’s literary jewel, the Third World Press. In its rhythms and [...]
Chicago History: A Dive into the “Inky Waters” of the Chicago River
Each year, through myriad government efforts, the Chicago River gets cleaner although no one would call it “clean.” Nonetheless, as polluted as its water remains, the river used to be [...]
Book review: “The Sioux Spaceman” by Andre Norton
It’s amazing, if you think of it, how the covers of science-fiction paperbacks are so often completely misleading. This is true to some extent for paperback novels in general, but [...]
Chicago History: The elevated Loop, a landmark in everything but name
The 1.8-mile-long elevated railroad Loop, which turns 120 on October 3, is not an official Chicago landmark — but it should be. Over the past 40 years, Chicago has publicly [...]
Book review: “The Adventures of Alyx” and “Picnic in Paradise” by Joanna Russ
Machine, the young man who has become Alyx’s lover, has disappeared into a hole in the snowscape, fallen into an ice chimney. He can be seen at the bottom, crumpled [...]
Book review: “History of Beauty,” edited by Umberto Eco
Consider the difficulty of those who pore through the dust and shards of earlier civilizations. You pick up a small sculpture which, to your Western eyes, seems to depict a [...]
Book review: “Pen of Iron: American Prose and the King James Bible” by Robert Alter
In this secular age, many writers striving to create literary works are uncomfortable with or antagonistic toward religion, religious faith and religious subject. For myriad reasons, faith isn’t hip. Yet, [...]
Chicago History: Building the elevated Loop with trickery, brilliance and sheer will
A young Charles T. Yerkes, a decade or more before he built Chicago's elevated Loop Chicago’s elevated Loop, completed 120 years ago on Oct. 3, 1897, was the [...]
Book review: “King Arthur” by Nick Higham
First things first: Everything we think we know about King Arthur was made up out of whole cloth. There are no historical sources for a flesh-and-blood Lancelot or Merlin or [...]
Book review: “Ecclesiastes” from “The Wisdom Books,” translated by Robert Alter with commentary
I have seen all the deeds that are done under the sun, and, look, all is mere breath, and herding the wind. (1:14) When you look behind fantasy football, and [...]