Exploring Top Books of Shelfari

Chicago: City on the Make: 50th Anniversary Edition, Newly Annotated

Chicago: City on the Make: 50th Anniversary Edition, Newly Annotated

by Nelson Algren

Ernest Hemingway once said of Nelson Algren's writing that "you should not read it if you cannot take a punch." The prose poem, Chicago: City on the Make , filled with language that swings and jabs and stuns, lives up to those words. This 50th anniversary edition is newly annotated with explanations for everything from slang to Chicagoans, famous and obscure, to what the Black Sox scandal was and why it mattered.... (more)

What, No Roses?

by Marianne Mancusi

Unless Dora Duncan can stop it, it's going to be another St. Valentine's Day Massacre. A year ago, her (now ex) boyfriend Nick stood her up at the worst possible moment. That was when she gave up important TV reporting for stories like "Too Stressed for Sex." And though such clips have a certain relevance, things have been a whole lot quieter. Too quiet. Until now. Now she's gotta go back in time (don't ask!)... (more)

How to Ruin My Teenage Life

by Simone Elkeles

In this sequel to How to Ruin a Summer Vacation, EVERYTHING in sixteen-year-old Amy Nelson Barak’s life is going wrong! Her mom got married and moved to the suburbs, and now they are going to have a baby. Amy moves in with her dad in Chicago and signs him up for an online dating service. His first four dates are that night . . . What else? Her dog Mutt impregnated her grumpy neighbor’s prized poodle, so Amy will... (more)

Glengarry Glen Ross (An Evergreen Book)

by David Mamet

Winner of the 1984 Pulitzer Prize, David Mamet's scalding comedy is about small-time, cutthroat real esate salesmen trying to grind out a living by pushing plots of land on reluctant buyers in a never-ending scramble for their fair share of the American dream. Here is Mamet at his very best, writing with brutal power about the tough life of tough characters who cajole, connive, wheedle, and wheel and deal for a... (more)

Fire in the Blood (Vampire Files, No 5)

by P. N. Elrod

Art in the Blood (Vampire Files, No 4)

by P.N. Elrod

Being a vampire isn't as glamorous as it sounds . . . Jack Fleming, Anerican journalist, was bitten by the wrong girl--and Jack joined the living dead. Eccentric detective Charles Escott helps Jack solve any strange cases that happen along . . . and now Jack and Charles investigate the case of the talented young artist whose life is suddenly cut short.

Blood on the Water (Vampire Files, No 6)

Blood on the Water (Vampire Files, No 6)

by P. N. Elrod

As a journalist in Capone-controlled Chicago, Jack Fleming is used to the sight of blood, but when he becomes a vampire, his addictive thirst for it puts him between the cops and the mob in a pulsating fight for his life.

Irish Cream : A Nuala Anne McGrail Novel (Nuala McGrail Mystery)

Irish Cream : A Nuala Anne McGrail Novel (Nuala McGrail Mystery)

by Andrew M. Greeley

Countless readers have been delighted by Father Andrew M. Greeley's bestselling tales of Nuala Anne McGrail, a fey, Irish-speaking woman from Galway blessed with the gift of second sight and a knack for unraveling mysteries, and her hapless husband and accomplice, Dermot Michael Coyne. From Irish Gold through Irish Stew! this spirited couple has untangled many a knotty mystery, both at home in Chicago and back... (more)

The Washington Story

by Adam Langer

In The Washington Story , Adam Langer revisits his extraordinary cast of characters from Crossing California , each inextricably linked by love, betrayal, reunions, sex, death, and rebirth-and all holding out hope that their dreams are worth pursuing, as they come of age in a very particular time in American history.

Hairstyles of the Damned (Punk Planet Books)

Hairstyles of the Damned (Punk Planet Books)

by Joe Meno

Hairstyles of the Damned is an honest and affectionate depiction of wanting to belong, but never quite belonging. Joe Meno’s pitch-perfect prose illuminates the tumultuous realities of American adolescence, the disintegration of the modern family, and the way a mix-tape can change a person’s life. Following the riotous exploits of Brian, a Catholic school malcontent, and his best friend Gretchen, a punk rock girl... (more)

Chicago Stars: Book 3

Nobody's Baby But Mine

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

The Plan Genius physics professor Dr. Jane Darlington desperately wants a baby. But finding a father won't be easy. Jane's super-intelligence made her feel like a freak when she was growing up, and she's determined to spare her own child that suffering. Which means she must find someone very special to father her child. Someone very…well…stupid. The Target Cal Bonner, the Chicago Stars legendary... (more)

Murder List: A Novel

by Julie Garwood

There are few authors who can weave nail-biting thrills, edge-of-your-seat drama, and romantic suspense as masterfully as Julie Garwood. Now she ratchets up the tension with Murder List , in which evil is on the hunt– and proves to be methodically organized and chillingly successful. When Chicago detective Alec Buchanan is offered a prime position with the FBI, it is the perfect opportunity to leave the Windy... (more)

Darkyn: Book 2

Private Demon

by Lynn Viehl

Night after night, Jema Shaw's dreams have become a haven for Thierry Durand. But his nocturnal visits have placed her in danger and brought her between two ancient enemies: the Brethren and the Darkyn.

American Pharaoh : Mayor Richard J. Daley - His Battle for Chicago and the Nation

American Pharaoh : Mayor Richard J. Daley - His Battle for Chicago and the Nation

by Adam Cohen

From his election in 1955 until his death in 1976, Mayor Richard J. Daley ruled Chicago with an iron fist. He was a man of profound prejudices who had a deep authoritarian streak, as the nation witnessed when his police officers savagely cracked down on peaceful protesters at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. While he transformed Chicago into a metropolis of skyscrapers, freeways, and a thriving downtown,... (more)

The Razor's Edge

by W. Somerset Maugham

Larry Darrell is a young American in search of the absolute. The progress of his spiritual odyssey involves him with some of Maugham's most brilliant characters - his fiancée Isabel whose choice between love and wealth have lifelong repercussions, and Elliott Templeton, her uncle, a classic expatriate American snob. Maugham himself wanders in and out of the story, to observe his characters struggling with their... (more)

Chicago Days : 150 Defining Moments in the Life of a Great City

Chicago Days : 150 Defining Moments in the Life of a Great City

by Chicago Tribune

Journey back through time to relive events that shaped the Chicago metropolitan area and contributed to its world-class reputation. Chicago Days is a collection of 150 essays and 500 dramatic photographs compiled from the voluminous files of the Chicago Tribune , the Chicago Historical Society, and other important collections.

Say When: A Novel

by Elizabeth Berg

When is a marriage worth saving and when is it best to let go? When do half-truths turn into full-blown lies? When does betrayal end and passion begin? Say When is a compelling, complex novel that takes readers into the heart of a modern marriage where companionship and intimacy, and denial and pain, so often collide. "Of course he knew she was seeing someone," begins the story of Frank Griffin, a man who's... (more)

Chicago Stars: Book 6

Match Me If You Can

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

You met star quarterback Kevin Tucker in This Heart of Mine . Now get ready to meet his shark of an agent, Heath Champion, and Annabelle Granger, the girl least likely to succeed. Annabelle's endured dead-end jobs, a broken engagement . . . even her hair's a mess! But that's going to change now that she's taken over her late grandmother's matchmaking business. All Annabelle has to do is land the Windy City's... (more)

Tintin in America (Adventures of Tintin)

The Adventures of Tintin

Tintin in America (Adventures of Tintin)

by Herge

The boy hero comes to the United States and triumphs over gangsters in Chicago of the 1930's and the pitfalls of the wild West.

A Rumor of War

by Philip Caputo

When it first appeared, A Rumor of War brought home to American readers, with terrifying vividness and honesty, the devastating effects of the Vietnam War on the soldiers who fought there. And while it is a memoir of one young man’s experiences and therefore deeply personal, it is also a book that speaks powerfully to today’s students about the larger themes of human conscience, good and evil, and the desperate... (more)

Shelfari Book Activity

Browse Subjects: chicago

Top Books

by Nelson Algren

by Marianne Mancusi

by Simone Elkeles

by David Mamet

by P. N. Elrod

by P.N. Elrod

by P. N. Elrod

by Andrew M. Greeley

by Adam Langer

by Joe Meno

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

by Julie Garwood

by Lynn Viehl

by Adam Cohen

by W. Somerset Maugham

by Chicago Tribune

by Elizabeth Berg

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

by Herge

by Philip Caputo