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Book blogs tend to all look alike after a while—they get bogged down in New York publishing industry minutiae or enrapt with hot-shit authors du jour. But Chicago blogs posess the same qualities as the city we love: They’re both cosmopolitan and provincial, and tend to favor the underdog.
Bookslut.com One of the most prominent literary blogs in the country, Bookslut is run by Chicagoan Jessa Crispin. Started in 2002, it quickly shot to the front of the pack, thanks largely to Crispin’s distinct voice. Acerbic about what she doesn’t like and effusive about what she does, she’s at her best when discussing nonfiction, and seems to have the most fun when dressing down a blowhard. Also featured is a monthly review and interview zine that focuses on small-press work, which is what’s best about online venues such as Bookslut—it sheds light on books ignored by the major media outlets.
Goldenrulejones.com Sort of the elder statesman of Chicago book blogs, this outlet for proprietor Sam Jones features an extensive literary events list, often highlighting the more academic or obscure happenings in town. Jones’s witty criticism touches on everything from Polish poetry to Chicago fiction.
Blog.booklistonline.com A senior editor at the Booklist Online, local boy Keir Graff canvasses the daily publishing news and digests it in witty ways for his blog Likely Stories.
Samizdatblog.blogspot.com Robert Archambeau’s Samizdat blog (which takes its name from his now-defunct poetry journal) is a fun read, with news and criticism that is incisive and, despite popular opinion of poetry, relevant.
— Jonathan Messinger
Becca
Thu, Jan 24, at 11:26am
I actually didn't care for bookslut.com. I really wanted to like it, but if you take a closer look at the reviews of the science books, she keeps saying that she's not a scientist, blah, blah, blah. The way in which she reviews these books is "I'm not a scientist, but...", I wish that she would hire a science major (maybe not a Ph.D or something), but someone who can speak to both the educated biologist/physicist/chemist AND the everyman interested in scientific pop literature.
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