Recommended Books & Films
So many great American writers have come from Chicago, lived here during their productive years, or set their work within the city's confines that it is impossible to recommend a single book that says all there is to say about Chicago. However, here are a few suggestions to get you started.
Upton Sinclair's The Jungle tells the tale of a young immigrant encountering the filthy, brutal city. Its 1906 publication caused an uproar that led to the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act. James T. Farrell's trilogy Studs Lonigan, published in the 1930s, explores the power of ethnic and neighborhood identity in Chicago. Other novels set in Chicago include Saul Bellow's The Adventures of Augie March and Humboldt's Gift, and Richard Wright's Native Son.
For an engrossing overview of the city's history, read City of the Century, by Donald Miller (an excellent PBS special based on the book is also available on video and DVD). Erik Larson's Devil in the White City, a history book that reads like a thriller, tells the engrossing story of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition and the serial killer who preyed on young women who visited from out of town.
Two books give a human face to the city's shameful public-housing history: Daniel Coyle's Hardball: A Season in the Projects, the true story of youngsters on a Little League baseball team from Cabrini Green; and Alex Kotlowitz's There Are No Children Here, a portrait of children growing up in the Robert Taylor homes.
And, of course, no one has given a voice to the people of Chicago as has the estimable Studs Terkel, whose books Division Street: America, Working, and Chicago are based on interviews with Chicagoans from every neighborhood and income level; and the late newspaper columnist Mike Royko, author of perhaps the definitive account of Chicago machine politics, Boss. His columns have been collected in One More Time: The Best of Mike Royko and For The Love of Mike: More of the Best of Mike Royko.
Chicago became a popular setting for feature films in the 1980s and 1990s. For a look at Chicago on the silver screen, check out Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1985), the ultimate teenage wish-fulfillment fantasy; The Fugitive (1993), which used the city's El trains as an effective backdrop; and My Best Friend's Wedding (1996). For many Chicagoans, the quintessential hometown movie scene is the finale to The Blues Brothers (1979), which features a multicar pileup in the center of downtown Daley Plaza.
