Books
Most people–even most Chicagoans–may not realize the breadth and depth of our city’s literature!
Stories of all kinds–whether they are coming-of-age fiction set in Bronzeville, memoirs of award-winning journalists and First Ladies, guides to Chicago pizza, or the history of Chicago’s infamous stockyards–have the power to connect us to our built environment, learn history, and teach us about each other.
How We Pick Books
Not all of Chicago’s amazing books make great running routes. The books that inspire our events go through an evaluation process before being selected. We assess things like the setting and its main locations (and distance between locations); value to teach us about lesser known, misunderstood, or hidden parts of Chicago’s past; and its overall ability to translate into a viable community-focused gathering. If a book checks all the boxes, we move forward to connect the book to a guide and plan our event.
Please note: Books that inspire our events are not representative of Read & Run Chicago’s views or beliefs. Rather, they are windows into different aspects of our city that we can use to dive into a specific topic.
Some Books That Have Inspired Past Events:
I am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Ericka Sanchez
The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
Three Girls from Bronzeville by Dawn Turner
Last Summer on State Street by Toya Wolf
The Beauty of Your Face by Sahar Mustafah
The Most Fun We Ever Had
Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
A Few Red Drops by Clare Hartfield
Becoming by Michelle Obama
Ghosts in the Schoolyard by Eve Ewing
Sin in the Second City by Karen Abbott
Are you an author or publisher interested in working with Read & Run Chicago?
Please send information and a press copy of the book to Allison Yates at allison@readandruntours.com.
