Links to some of our favorite People & Places
Independent Booksellers of Interest
Anderson's has stores in Naperville, Illinois and Downers Grove, IL. Anderson's sponsors many events, including readings, book signings, and events designed to increase interest in reading among children and young people. A professional service oriented staff makes these stores a pleasant stop for browsing or buying. Anderson’s carries Fifth Wednesday Journal.
Independently owned, community-oriented bookstore located in the heart of Lincoln Square, Chicago.
Individuals Worth Reading
Kim lives and teaches in San Francisco. She is author of four poetry collections and co-author of "The Poet's Companion: A Guide to the Pleasures of Writing Poetry."
Patricia Spears Jones is a widely anthologized and award-winning African_American poet, arts writer, performer and playwright. She has received grants and awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York Foundation for the Arts.
Anna Leahy won the Wick Poetry Prize for her collection Constituents of Matter (Kent University Press, 2007). Her poetry has appeared in many literary journals and anthologies.
Cris Mazza is the author of more than a dozen books of fiction, most recently Waterbaby (Softskull, 2007). She is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship and three Illinois Arts Council awards.
A leading national Xicano writer who founded Tia Chucha Press in Chicago in 1989. He also founded Tia Chucha's Centro Cultural and Bookstore in Lake View Terrace, CA. Rodriguez is the author of many books of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, memoir, and children's literature.
A prominent figure in contemporary poetry with six volumes of poetry to his credit, is also accomplished in the art of the interview. He has published lengthy interviews with major poets such as Ted Kooser. He travels across the country for readings and he has served as poetry editor for several publications.
Kevin Stein is the Illinois Poet Laureate. He has published nine volumes of poetry and criticism, including the forthcoming History’s Bicep (University of Illinois Press, 2008) He has received a National Endowment for the Arts Poetry Fellowship and the Frederick Boek Prize, as well as many other awards and prizes for his writing.