We love to read and write, and not just our own posts here on the World Wide Webs. We’ve been working on our first novel for years. It’s a love story involving time-traveling unicorns and so far we have about 850 pages of it written, but we don’t know when we’ll get it published (fingers crossed!). As such, we have a soft spot in our heart for local writers who have been a tad more successful. Luckily we live in a city that gives us a chance to here these talented scribes read! more ›

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The double whammy of the Mondays and cabin fever can drive the most stout constitutions deep into their comforters. Here are some things to inspire you to layer up and head out. more ›

The clock to '08 is ticking. What are you doing to ring in the new year? If the answer to that question is a desperate, collar-loosening, sweat-inducing "I don't know!" then here are a few last-minute suggestions. Everything listed here will cost you less than $40 and was not sold out at the time of posting. more ›

If you're looking to add a little mystery to your holiday repertoire, this month's local author night at the Book Cellar is mysterious. The writers will be on hand after to sign books for last-minute presents and answer questions. more ›

In our experience, most people who eat at Costello's Sandwich and Sides get the same thing every time. It's their Costello's Match. Former Chicagoist editors Scott Smith and Erin Shea love the Heartland and Smokin' Turk, respectively. Our boyfriend's favorite is the Italian Grinder. For us, our Costello's Match is the Turkey Focaccia. Generally speaking, the Turkey Focaccia is a basic turkey sandwich — turkey, provolone, lettuce, tomato, vinaigrette. But what makes this sandwich... more ›

What started as Chicago actor and director David Blixt’s creative inquiry into the Capulet-Montague feud quickly became so much more. The Master of Verona, Blixt’s debut novel set in 14th Century Italy, explores Italian political life, conspiracy, the life of Dante, and the possible backstory for Romeo and Juliet. While directing the aforementioned Shakespeare play years ago, he found its all-consuming resolution fascinating and troublesome, hinting at but never revealing the source of the families’ feud. So started an intense exploration that took the author to the Newberry Library, the University of Michigan, and the villa Serego Alighieri in Verona. more ›

Hopefully, you already love Found, the magazine and series of books created completely out of found items submitted by readers. The Found magazines and books play on a voyeur mindset of peeking at all the things that are none of your business. Items within the series, include a list about a budget with $600 set aside for crack, and other more poignant items, such as a letter found attached to a floating balloon addressed to... more ›

We hope some of you got a chance to go to something at the Chicago Book Festival last week, but if not, here’s your chance. Our take on the second week: Jeffrey Toobin, CNN’s senior legal analyst, discusses and signs his newest book The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court, and maybe adds a few pointers for broke Chicagoists. Monday, Oct. 8, 6 p.m., Harold Washington Library, 400 S. State St., Cindy... more ›

If you were looking for some new books to cuddle up with for the oncoming winter, the Chicago Book Festival is here to help. There's an events booklet available at libraries and bookstores and a PDF online. Much of the information is on readings in the city that happen anyway, but we are excited about the extra discussions for this fall's One Book, One Chicago, Arthur Miller's The Crucible, which we haven't read since high... more ›

The “Chicago theater season” is as anachronistic as our Columbia House Record Club membership. August was simply a lull before the crush of Fall openings coming to major institutions and their well-funded houses, who'll receive sufficient ink and column inches in the daily and weekly papers. We’re turning an eye to those less heralded venues doubling as rental space, educational resource, and meeting locale. None of these theaters are named after deep-pocketed donors, but that... more ›

Would you like flies with that? more ›

If Monday’s holiday has you cramming five days of work into a four-day week and the headlines are only aggravating you further, you need to put the laptop away and get yourself to a comedy show this weekend. The Blerds, a cabal of mostly Chicago-based comics and a film producer, are celebrating their Paper Anniversary Saturday night at The Spot. Drink specials have been promised. The good people at The Bastion are totally crushing on... more ›

Carnivores are happy people. Or at least that’s the case for the ones buying their meat from Paulina Market. From the outside, this West Lakeview store, with its brick facade and minimal windows, offers few clues of what awaits inside. But pull open the front door, inhale, and that lovely aroma of smoky goodness is a telltale sign. If you still haven’t figured it out yet, the pink pig-head ticket dispenser by the entrance should clarify things. (Be sure to grab a number; you’ll need it.) more ›

Parents of Chicago, we know what you’ve been craving: a place to get a decent beer with friends and pick up a quality picture book for your child at the same time. Order your favorite Unibroue, pull up your stroller, and relax at Lincoln Square’s Book Cellar. This independent bookstore has our favorite children’s book selection in the city; they stock everything from board books about urban babies to favorites like Don’t Let the Pigeon... more ›

With a serious addiction to coffee and an ever-growing frustration at the sheer number of corporate coffee chain locations, we love to find independently owned and operated coffee shops around town; especially when these places do pretty much everything right. Enter, The Grind. We gladly stroll right past the Starbucks on the corner to visit this cozy little place, located on the main strip of Lincoln Square. The Grind offers a warm ambiance, consistently friendly... more ›

There was quite a lively discussion yesterday afternoon in the Chicagoist offices. One we wanted to share with you, gentle reader, on this most special of days. As we were talking about the Illinois Bar Association's endorsements of judges to be retained, we got to talking about how weird it is to vote for them. Some of us felt that there shouldn't be judicial elections, arguing that the Constitution intended for the judiciary to be... more ›

A new movie theater opened in Cicero. Teenagers under 18 can't go in without a parent unless they take a class and get a "code of conduct" ID card. The Shedd Aquarium and local restaurants remind you to make smart seafood choices. Or else, you know, "the ocean called, they ran out of shrimp!" Bring back the alligator snapping turtle! Don't forget to join us tomorrow at Daily Bar and Grill in Lincoln Square... more ›

Here at the Chicagoist offices, we have an entire staff dedicated to gathering all the news and information about elections for you. In all of the craziness of this election season, we want to remind you that going out to vote is more than just a right, it's your civic responsibility. Selecting who will make all the big decisions that will affect your life for the next few years is really important. And if you... more ›

Domestic beer specials don’t typically blow our kilts up, but we were pleasantly surprised by the craft beer selection offered at Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro (3905 N. Lincoln Ave.), which happens to serve all of its American-made beers for $2.50 on Thursday evenings. Sure the name is a little long and confusing (what the hell is an Irish Bistro anyway), but the place has a banging beer list. more ›

All year we’ve been hearing the hype and the promises. This week, two Chicago cultural institutions invite the public to see the results of their high profile face lifts. The venue once known as the Chicago Historical Society regularly provided modest, helpful insights into local and regional history. Now it’s been renovated and renamed the Chicago History Museum, sporting 16,000 shiny new square feet for robust programming, heeding Burnham’s command to “Make no small plans.”... more ›

"Harold's Chicken-Fish-Shrimp" via Don Sorsa in Contribute. more ›

Victory Gardens Theater is shedding its identity crisis. Up until now, it was entirely possible to see show after show by the Lincoln Avenue hub’s resident companies without ever discovering a VG original. That’s too bad, since they’ve been breaking Chicago playwrights like Charles Smith and James Sherman for over 30 years. They also cast that guy from CSI years before he was popular and that guy from The Cosby Show years after he sported that Gordon Gartrelle knockoff. more ›

College is a social powder keg. Students meet classmates from places they’ve only seen on a map. Members of the entitled class share rooms with the scholarship students. Freshmen meet people who look different, worship different, and think different and, if they’re humanities majors, engage theories about what it all means. Professors and administrators don’t make things any easier. Forests are sacrificed for underinformed theses about “the other” in literature and society. We shouldn’t be judged by the color of our skin, unless financial aid or heritage awards are at stake. Racial discrimination is petty and wrong, but so are some of the remedies dreamt up to combat it. more ›

John McNally, author of “The Book of Ralph”, is a prolific writer. Originally a Southside Chicago native, McNally has written two novels; his short fiction has appeared in over 30 publications; he has edited five anthologies and has won countless awards and fellowships. more ›

Krause Music Store? more ›

The art world is getting a little more casual with the arrival of summer. This weekend we’re looking forward to seeing quality work and engaging in stimulating discussion in a more casual environment, and maybe laughing our ass off. more ›

Elizabeth Berg is a true Chicago treasure. Originally from Minnesota, but now settled here, she has written over sixteen books, is listed by current best-selling authors as one of their “favorite” writers, and of course, the ultimate for any novelist (or no), her novel “Open House” was one of Oprah’s Book Club books. Now, we’re kidding of course, it’s not the ultimate, but it sure doesn’t hurt, and we won’t knock anyone or anything that’s getting people to read. So, here’s a quick shout out to Oprah, book clubs and those McDonalds paper-tray-placemat things. more ›

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When Chicagoist went out to check out Chef Carol Wallack's new restaurant, sola (3868 N. Lincoln Ave.), this week we had high hopes. Luckily, we were not disappointed. The cuisine at sola is contemporary American, but because of Chef Wallack's background, there's a lot of Hawaiian and Asian flair. Chicagoist started off with the lobster and shitake potstickers (no-brainer!) and a carmelized onion tartlet (gruyere, sweet Maui onions, and apple) that we thought was intruging and ended up being really "wow"ed by. Delish. We also tried the hot and sour soup. Best. Hot & Sour. Ever. For entrees we stuck with seafood, which is the majority of the menu, but there is a NY Strip for those who need to get their meat on. Chicagoist got the ono and miso black cod - Nobu's famous. Both were cooked perfectly, flavorful with sides and sauces that complimented, but didn't overwhelm these tender fish. Oh, also, the waiter didn't need to twist our arm very hard to get us to try the parmesan truffle french fries. Holy smokes, pommes frites used to be our favorite fried pototo, but not any more. more ›