Is it wrong to feel optimistic? You couldn’t be blamed if you didn’t. Yet while the country’s economy crumbles around us and less and less funds are available for the producers of the printed word, those in the literary world are finding new and inventive ways to stay afloat. We will not go down without a fight, and progress, of course, is key. So is awareness—in order to get the word out more efficiently (and, likely, to untether itself from the uncertain future of the paper form), Printers Row Book Fair changed its name from “Book Fair” to “Lit Fest” to have a title that better fully represents the weekend’s events, in time for its twenty-fifth anniversary edition. As is our custom, we time our annual Lit 50 list to the weekend’s events; this year’s list of local behind-the-scenes literati—no straight-up authors or poets this time—covers a large spectrum of Chicago’s world of words. As with past years we sought out those behind the smaller presses as well as the monumental figures. Some new names have emerged and many staples appear again, but all tirelessly labor to bring this ancient art to the community at large. Read the rest of this entry »

Seth and Adrian Tomine, two top-shelf Drawn & Quarterly artists, are in town this week. Tomine’s got the paperback of his fine, bracing “Shortcomings” and a reproduction “box set” of his earliest Optic Nerve comics, as well as the mammoth, daunting “A Drifting Life,” Tatsumi Yoshihiro’s eleven-years-in-the-making graphic memoir, the 850 pages of which he edited and lettered. Seth’s published “George Sprott: 1894-1975,” a large-formatted life of an apocryphal Canadian TV nature host. Memory and pangs of regret permeate each of the books.

Tomine tells me Tatsumi does his work without assistants, unlike a lot of Japanese cartoonists. “I found it very inspiring, not only in terms of its scope and ambition, but also in that it confirmed my long-held belief that it’s the small, quotidian details drawn from an artist’s real experience that will always bring a narrative to life. I think ‘A Drifting Life’ is a great depiction of the cartoonist’s struggle, and a great resource in terms of the history of Japanese cartooning. I think it will be read for a long time, especially as the American interest in manga continues to grow.” Read the rest of this entry »

On January 23, Ice Box Press holds a reading and book signing at Quimby’s in Wicker Park, in celebration of a chapbook release, “Say To These Bones, LIve!” by Ryan Pendell.  Also in attendance will be poets Tara Walker and Erin Messer, previewing their upcoming chapbooks.  “My book of poems, “Say To These Bones, LIve!,” captures a lot of the joy and humor I find in language while keeping a kind of hopeful melancholy about the world,” Pendell says of his book.  “As the title suggests, my work speaks to the yearning for repair and resurrection inside the human heart.”  He’s also quite excited to be reading with the other poets, he claims.  “I think our styles create a rich dialogue together, a playful experimental poetry that has become a trademark of our generation of poets.”

Have you ever fantasized about Harry Potter kissing Draco Malfoy, or maybe going down on Professor Snape? Dozens of people who do gather at Quimby’s tonight to listen to writers from all across the nation (and one from Copenhagen!) spin their Harry Potter smut.
Read the rest of this entry »

RECOMMENDED
Some cringed at the idea of the author of “Never Mind the Pollacks” penning a parenting book, but it turned out “Alternadad” wasn’t so bad after all—actually, it was kind of charming, as Pollack documented the chronicles of raising, along with his wife, their son Elijah. You can gather pretty much all you need from the title and Pollack’s past work—it’s textbook hipster-parenting (well, at least it seems textbook now, as more and more strollers hit Damen and Milwaukee), but with Pollack’s prose it playfully delivers. Elijah goes to rock shows, has a Johnny Cash poster in his room, dances to the Sex Pistols—put it all in the blender and you’ll have a cool kid, which is Pollack’s ultimate desire. “The Neal Pollack Anthology of American Literature”—his first book—found an audience in satire cult-sters, and “Alternadad” has discovered its own as well. Reportedly, they’re making a movie—who should play Pollack? <I>(Tom Lynch)

Neal Pollack reads from “Alternadad” February 21 at Quimby’s, 1854 West North, (773)342-00910, at 7pm. Free.

By Laura Castellano

Elizabeth Crane exudes happiness. Her broad smile and frequent bouts of laughter seem to come easily. “I don’t know if it’s just my nature or not,” she says, “but I certainly have not always been this happy.”

The acclaimed author explores the aforementioned sunny attitude in her new book of short stories, “You Must Be This Happy To Enter.” Crane’s past collections, “All This Heavenly Glory” and “When the Messenger is Hot,” touched on failed relationships and death. The new stories have a decidedly more uplifting theme (though the same sharp wit). Her optimism, she says, comes partly from teaching at “fine schools” (including the University of Chicago and Northwestern) from her recent successes as a writer, and from the solid relationship she has with her husband.
Read the rest of this entry »

Catching up with Eugene Robinson requires a considerable amount of stamina. The journalist, spoken-word artist, musician, mixed-martial-arts cage fighter and, most recently, author, has a pretty full plate. Last year alone saw the release of “The Narcotic Story,” a much-anticipated work from long-running art-rock phenomenon, Oxbow, a grueling tour itinerary and the release of Robinson’s first book, “Fight: Or, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Ass-Kicking but Were Afraid You’d Get Your Ass Kicked for Asking” (Harper).
Read the rest of this entry »