30 CHICAGO CHRISTMASES: A PERSONAL JOURNEY RECOUNTING THIRTY HOLIDAY SEASONS IN THE SECOND CITY

by MICHAEL MCCALLEY

My name is Michael McCalley, and 30 Chicago Christmases is the first book I have authored. Before now, my writing outside of work had been limited to personal correspondence and accounts of travels when I have taken a vacation. Many people have told me how much they enjoy my letters which I consider my favorite compliment. What I write also tends to be short, generally no more than a few thousand words. Never would I have considered myself an author or a writer of an entire book. But then the pandemic hit. I coped with lockdowns and restrictions by writing more than usual. During this time, I successfully recovered the most aged of some lost “year-in-review” Christmas letters which I had stored on some old floppy disks. They go back continuously to Christmas 1991. Beginning with the 2009 Advent season, additional mailings detailing the build-up toward Christmas in the Windy City supplemented the annual letters sent to my parents. The year-in-review letter sent for 2020 is my 30th.
My pandemic project has been the compilation of all my holiday correspondence into what has become 30 Chicago Christmases. At times, it may read as a reflective memoir intended for those interested in personal growth and development. The book is also an account of how Christmas is observed in Chicago, which is part current history and part travelogue. I chronicle the happenings downtown, in my neighborhood, at work, and at home. Vivid descriptions of activities and events which make the Yuletide special in the Windy City put the reader at the center of the festivities. This book will delight readers who want the experience of a Chicago Christmas for themselves and to share with others.

172 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 24, 2020

Reviews

[Robin Larson · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the worst book I’ve read in a long time. The author is boring and self-important. His writing style is best described as bland. Another review said his writing sounds like stanzas in an eloquent poem. I don’t know what poetry they’ve read but it must not be very good.

I only finished this book because I’m a completionist. I hope to not read something this dry again.

I thought perhaps once he got to 2011 and it coincided with my move to Chicago it would get better. It only got more familiar - not better.

Also, the author making fun of non-binary people at the end of the 2019 letter isn’t cool and it isn’t funny. You’d think living in Edgewater for so long he’d not be so rude.

[Sandy Mckenzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first few letters in the book, but then it seemed like he did mostly the same thing every year and went to the same places. I finished it, but almost didn't several times. He never mentioned a love life of any kind throughout the years, which left me wondering. No dates, nothing. His life was about work and family and some travel. It left me wanting more.