LIT 50
Who really books in Chicago
Nos. 31 - 40

31
Brad Jonas
Keeping up with the Jonas
When Brad Jonas says that he’s "happily plugging along," its not in that cutesy little-engine-that-could kind of way. It’s more a how’s-that-guy-find-time-to-sleep kind of way. And that’s just fine with him—after all, someone has to organize this summer’s Columbia College Festival of the Book, a celebration of the aesthetic of "the book" and its evolution into an object of art. And, of course, someone has to organize CIROBE (the Chicago International Remainder and Overstock Books Exhibition), an annual pot-of-gold event for buyers and sellers of remainder and overstock books. And naturally, Powell’s—with three locations, the city’s largest used bookstore—isn’t gonna run itself; not to mention Powell’s Wholesale, supplier of countless Oxford World’s Classics and other important titles. But Jonas somehow manages to pack it all into his schedule, leaving only one question begged: For a guy who so obviously loves books, how on earth does he find the time to read them?

32
Alex Kotlowitz
Quick Kotlowitz
Years after its debut in 1992, Alex Kotlowitz’ bestselling "There Are No Children Here: The Story of Two Boys Growing Up in the Other America" (Anchor Books/Doubleday) still sends chills to its readers. Take the line from Lafeyette, one of the boys growing up in the Henry Horner homes: "If I grow up, I’d like to be a bus driver." With the destruction of Cabrini Green and recent promises from the CHA to firmly relocate all current residents, Kotlowitz’ book stands ever-present in the background as a testament to the gruelingness of life in the projects. His 1998 book, "The Other Side of the River: A Story of Two Towns, a Death, and America’s Dilemma," won similar critical accolades for its level-headed depiction of two towns divided by a river, racist notions and an unsolved murder. Keeping himself busy with frequent contributions to The New Yorker, and teaching undergrad and grad classes in non-fiction narrative at Northwestern, Kotlowitz also recently contributed to Ira Glass’ "This American Life." Reticent to discuss the idea for his next book, Kotlowitz only offers this juicy tidbit: "I’ve got to see if I can pull it off."

33
Gwendolyn Brooks
Brooks not done
Over the past five years, Gwendolyn Brooks has handed out a total of $2,500 to hopeful poets at the Guild Complex-sponsored Annual Gwendolyn Brooks Open Mic Awards, to the cheers of an always-enthusiastic audience. Though Brooks may be keeping quiet these days, her popularity continues to grow. The poetess released "Selected Poems" (HarperCollins) last year, rescuing some of her lesser-known poems from the out-of-print grave, allowing critics to rediscover her talent. In 1968, she was appointed Poet Laureate of Illinois, succeeding the late Carl Sandburg, and has comfortably inhabited the throne ever since. Brooks also has two schools named after her in the Chicago area, the same number as the Daley family, proving poetry wields its own brand of political power.

34
Susan Harris
Literary Wildcatter
As its editor-in-chief and acting director, Harris keeps pushing Northwestern University Press’s reputation as a top publisher of literature in translation, while strengthening the trade non-fiction and scholarly sides of its booklist as well. Several recent titles have sold out their modest first print runs, including Ingeborg Bachmann’s "The Book of Franza and Requiem for Fanny Goldman" and Alicia Yanez Cosio’s "Bruna and Her Sisters in the Sleeping City." Never thought of Tolstoy as much of a riot? Stay tuned for NUP’s satirical history of Russian literature—"And Quiet Flows the Vodka," penned by Alicia Chudo (a pseudonym for prominent local Slavist Saul Morson).

35
Mark Suchomel
Independence fighter
Sales were up 40 percent last year at Independent Publishers Group, which distributes the books of 350 small- and medium-sized publishers. Suchomel, who is president of the River North company, says better business is due to the boom in smaller presses, and the handle those presses are getting on publishing better books. "The size of the press doesn’t have anything to do with the quality," he explains. The advent of superstores—seeking, as they do, to stock something for everyone—has only helped business, as has the rise of the Internet. (Computer books are an IPG specialty.) The company doubles its warehouse and office space this month, and its distribution of English-language books by foreign publishers is on the rise.

36
Hugh Holton
Holton on
This February saw the publication of "Time of the Assassins" (Forge) the seventh installment in Holton’s series about Police Commander Larry Cole, which will be followed up next spring with "The Devil’s Shadow." But, despite the success of Holton’s adventure thrillers, which he likens to "Indiana Jones" crossed with the Chicago Police Department, there’s no end in sight to the author’s thirty-one-year stint with the force, where he’s a real-life Third Watch Commander of the second district. (After working from 2 to 10pm, he routinely comes home to dash off up to five pages a night.) Keep an eye out this summer for his editing job on "The Thin Black Line," a non-fiction collection of stories from black cops around the country.

37
Bill Ott
Ott luck
At 95-years-young, Booklist is to librarians what methamphetamines are to truckers. And as if covering nearly 8,000 titles every year isn’t enough—everything from mysteries to kids books to poetry, many scribed by top-notch writers—they’ve ventured into the Internet game. Editor and Publisher Bill Ott has steered the company so that its oh-so-reputable reviews now appear on about ten carefully chosen online bookseller sites (including Amazon.com), creating a demand for Booklist content unprecedented in the company’s history. Above all, though, Booklist’s ambition and reputation for quality makes it Chicago’s low-key answer to The New York Times and Publishers Weekly.

38
Steve Fiffer
Dino might
The Evanston res struck paydirt this year with "Tyrannosaurus Sue: The Extraordinary Saga of the Largest, Most Fought Over T-Rex Ever Found" (W.H. Freeman & Co.), just published to coincide with the Field Museum’s unveiling of Sue, and Disney’s premiere of its summer blockbuster-to-be, "Dinosaur." The book (which Fiffer dashed off in three months last fall) reveals the surprising amount of turmoil that met with the discovery of everyone’s favorite fossil, and it delves into the rich history of dinosaur hunting over the last few centuries. Fiffer, who has co-edited (with wife Sharon) the anthologies "Home," "Body" and "Family," and wrote last year’s "Three Quarters, Two Dimes & A Nickel: A Memoir of Becoming Whole," now turns his thoughts on "The Second Brain," an upcoming biography of the spinal cord.

39
Jerome Kramer
Book maker
Recently putting to bed their tenth issue, Kramer and his Book Magazine crew are settling nicely into their niche—a bi-monthly, Entertainment Weekly-meets-The New York Times Books Review glossy conceived under the idea that books are fun and cool. Folks seem to agree; smart articles on J.K. Rowling, George Clooney (for his work in the film adaptation of Sebastian Junger’s "The Perfect Storm") and Bob Costas are helping Book break the mold, but don’t take away from pieces on authors like Frank McCourt, Stephen Ambrose and others. The magazine also plays host to what is perhaps the most comprehensive calendar of book events in the country, as well as running short stories and discussion guides. All this has generated a decent swell of industry and reader attention, and Kramer says he plans to expand the editorial content to reflect not only Chicago, but New York/L.A.-oriented content as well.

40
Ira Glass
Radio active
How often does the radio make you want to read? If we’re talking about "This American Life," the answer is likely "every week." The WBEZ-FM-produced variety show, hosted by Ira Glass and heard on some 200 NPR stations nationwide, delivers to listeners the hottest names in contemporary American literature: David Sedaris, Anne Lamott, George Saunders, Dave Eggers, David Foster Wallace, Philip Gourevitch, Alex Kotlowitz, contributing editor Sarah Vowell; as well as introduces old favorites like Tillie Olsen and even Spaulding Gray to a new generation of readers. Whether it finds authors reading from their written work or reporting on something special for one of Glass’ always interiguing, often quirky themes (mandatory drug sentencing to pets, political primaries to crushes, a whole episode on books that changed writers’ lives and, of course, the annual Thanksgiving show devoted to poultry), "This American Life" provides one of the most enjoyable, refreshing venues for discovering today’s American writers.

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