What do you get when you take Harlem Renaissance literature and adapt it to a one-man stage performance? Well, here's your chance to find out. more ›

In this roundup, a local writer wins a prestigious award. Poetry Foundation's new apps. StoryStudio Chicago readies some writing classes and more. more ›

The Poetry Foundation named the third national Children’s Poetry Laureate last month. J. Patrick Lewis is the author of many poetry and prose books for kids (check out his repertoire on Amazon). As the Poet Laureate, J. Patrick Lewis will spend the next two years raising awareness about children’s poetry and getting more kids involved in reading and writing their own poetry. So... what exactly does the Children’s Poetry Laureate do then? Bring poetry to more children how? We asked J. Patrick Lewis that very same question, among others. more ›

Here are a few literary goings-on to keep on your radar. more ›

Marvin Tate and yours truly go way back to his days fronting D-Settlement, one of the most anarchic blends of funk, rock, soul, jazz and improvised music this city has ever produced. Think P-Funk on a lower scale and you have a sense of what they were all about. D-Settlement evolved from the ashes of Uptighty, a dance band collective led by guitarist Leroy Back that also featured Lula Café's Amalea Tshilds on vocals more ›

Last week, Brookfield Zoo unveiled The Great Bear Wilderness, a snazzy new exhibit that features some freaking adorable bears. This weekend, they’re highlighting an interesting component of the exhibit: the 38 poems that are artistically “carved in wood, sandblasted in rockwork, stenciled on acrylic, painted on sidewalks, and digitally printed on translucent Plexiglas.” The project is called the Language of Conversation, and it aims to get zoologists collaborating with poets, to get poets collaborating with zoologists, and to bring everyone from the zoo’s staff to its visitors along for the ride. more ›

Thax -- rock poet, gadabout town, music lover -- moved to Austin last year and apparently the Chicago AV Club just figured out he was absent from the scene. (Funny how you don't appreciate the idiosyncratic ones that actually contribute to a city's scene until they're gone, huh?) That prestigious publication caught up with Thax this week to compare Chicago to Austin and, guess what, Thax likes Austin better. more ›

The title really says it all. Enjoy. more ›

New Yorker staff writer Alex Ross has made a name for himself by writing about classical music with thoroughness and authority, qualities that nearly won him a Pulitzer for his first (and, until this September 28, only) book, "The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the 20th Century." Ross's command over the technical aspects of music, near omnicience regarding today's scene, and deep understanding of the cultural and historical context make the book essential reading for anyone trying to understand the recent history, and current state, of Western art music. more ›

Marc Kelly Smith, founder of the slam poetry movement is featured today in a New York Times article on the evolution of the art form. more ›

April may be the cruelest month more ›

This Sunday, young Chicago authors will flood the Vic Theatre for the ninth-annual Young Chicago Authors poetry slam, Louder than a Bomb. While Flava Flav further exploits the legacy of Public Enemy to VH1’s Celebreality bacchanalia, Young Chicago Authors brings over 650 of the best and brightest writers attending over 50 Chicago area schools and community centers together to spit, flow, and speak the truth in the name of oral storytelling and the spoken word. more ›

If you happened to notice a number of kilted men and tartan-clad women wandering around the area of Irving and Lincoln this weekend, that would Chicago's Scottish community celebrating the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns at the Globe Pub. Poet, songwriter, bard, womanizer and drinker, Burns' birthday is always cause to celebrate. At the Globe there was reading of his poems, singing "Auld Lang Syne," drinking whisky, enjoying bagpipe tunes, and dining on what was most likely the only haggis in the city. Each year, the Globe (which also has a very impressive beer list) toasts Scotland's national poet with poetry, booze, music and a feast on the intimidating dish. more ›

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book release makes for cerebral entertainment so nice you can see it twice. more ›

Poet Thax Douglas has long been described as a polarizing figure in the local music scene, but after viewing the recent documentary on Douglas, Thax: The Movie, we've decided that viewpoint is skewed and incorrect. While there are a number of incredibly vocal critics who deride Douglas' presence at shows, the overriding majority of musicians and concert attendees appreciate his contributions to the community. Luminaries from Ted Leo, to Josh Caterer, to Jeff Tweedy sing the praises of Douglas' wordsmithing, and we even admit to gaining a new appreciation of his work now that we have a broader view of the poet's background. more ›

Behold, an actual Memory Lane! It's near Foster and Canfield. more ›

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At a Rainbow/PUSH Coalition Dr. Martin Luther King Junior Scholarship Breakfast this morning, Governor Blagojevich gave a three-minute speech, and included this charming verse, aimed at the seniors in the audience. more ›

What do you get when you combine an elaborate set design, rock and roll magicians, acoustic custom poetry, and a melange of feel-good local bands? A whole lotta awesome, that's what. more ›

Chicago Calling, a collaborative festival linking Chicago-based artists with international friends and counterparts, continues tonight and Saturday, the exclamation point to Chicago Artists Month 2007. The festival as exchange program is perfect for an age where Skype, Google Talk, and unlimited wireless plans have dissolving the distance between us and our European, African, and Asian friends. If you’re commuting through the Thompson Center tonight, stop by the front plaza to hear Jennifer Karmin’s “Beast Poem,”... 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 ›

"When I was younger, I used to try and charm women into taking me home so I could, you know, get a look at their ... bookshelves." Troy Jollimore says this about judging people based on what books they read, and as a preface to his poem consisting of the titles of books he's read or owned. Jollimore, alongside authors Emily Flake and Rebecca Barry, read their work last night at September's Bookslut reading, nestled... more ›

Conventional wisdom says that we should not speak ill of the deceased, but that's a tall endeavor if we're to take the pundits' criticisms of William Wirtz as law, although one has surprised us with his restraint. The longtime Blackhawks owner and liquor magnate passed away early this morning at the age of 77 from cancer. It's easy to say that Mr. Wirtz was stuck in a bygone era, treating his beloved hockey franchise as... more ›

Braless and wearing an oversized white T-shirt with a hand drawn peace sign and the word "Love" written underneath it, Patti Smith humbly began her set with an extra-Jamaican sounding "Redondo Beach," fumbling some of the lyrics and apologizing to the crowd for being too excited. more ›

Having attended the Printers Ball in the past, we knew that the free-to-all-comers event would attract more than its fair share of people. We also hoped that having Bridgeport's Zhou B Center host this year's model would allow for more accommodation of guests. We had intended to show up as the Zhou B Center is practically in our backyard, but decided to first pay our respects to the recently departed. Unfortunately, as we were making... more ›

Sometimes we long for the old days when there were no cell phones. Text messaging was only for the über-rich Skytel set, and there was no reminder to silence your phones at the beginning of every concert, movie, poetry reading, dance recital, etc. It was much quieter then. And much, much cheaper. But in 2007 we are all carrying around computers in our pockets. Just over thirty years ago, in order to get a fraction... more ›