Open Books Chicago discussion

Let us know who you are, what you are reading, and what you'd like to see here!

I'll start. I'm Kevin. I like long books, not on the beach. I tend to read a lot of social histories pertaining to commerce and/or food, South/Latin American fiction, and travel writing with the occasional Philosophy. My cookbook collection often mocks the small size of my kitchen.

I'm also the Store Manager at Open Books. Come say hi!

I'm thom. Or thorn. I'll answer to either in the meatspace.

I mostly read sci-fi and fantasy, though if I stray from either of those I tend to stick with fiction. I enjoy long and short books pretty much equally. While I do have a couple of cookbooks, I rarely use them since I prefer to make things up as I go in the kitchen. I'm a musician, computer tech, and yarn-crafter. I also refuse to abandon the Oxford comma.

I'm not entirely sure what I'd like to see here. I'm new to GoodReads, so I'm still figuring out how things work. Thanks for the invite, Kevin!

I'm Nicole. I like novels. I tend toward classics/sci-fi/fantasy/young adult books. I'm really picky (not). I'm a writer, reader, editor, and critic. I'm a grammar nit-pick (which means that I am also a supporter of the Oxford comma).

I don't know what I'd like to see either. I'm noncommittal that way.

I'm Lois. I love Open Books and the Oxford Comma!

My reading ratio is about 80% fiction to 20% non-fiction. I'm a bit of an anglophile, so I love British fiction, historical and contemporary.

I like the idea of having the OB Book Club highlighted here. Maybe another thing to do would be staff, volunteer, and customer recommendations.

Hi Thom, Nicole, and Lois!

We will be building shelves for volunteer/staff and customer recommends shortly. Stay tuned!

Hello, I'm Kimmie. I've not been to Chicago, which also means I've never been to Open Books, but I have met Kevin, and he's a swell guy, so here I am.

I'm one of the folks who runs Bluestockings in New York City. I too am a proponent of the Oxford comma, as are many of my matches on OK Cupid. I read a lot, both fiction and non, and my Goodreads list can tell you more about that.

Hello, I'm Mary. I am a frequent Open Books customer (and someday soon, hopefully a volunteer) and my business cards say I'm a Marketing Manager for a book publisher, so I spend a lot of time with, reading, and thinking about books. My office is a big supporter of the Oxford comma and I am a big supporter of the editors here, so put me in the "pro" column as well.

I read a lot of both fiction and non, and I usually go through phases of what I'm reading the most of at one particular time. This year so far has been a year for mythology, folk and fairy tales in various incarnations and interpretations. I'm working on being more diligent about updating my Goodreads list.

I'll have to think about what I might want to see here. I like the recommendations idea which is already in the works.

Hi, I'm Aarti. I used to intern for Open Books, but now I'm just a groupie :-)

I have become much more varied in my reading in recent years. I used to read mostly fantasy and historical fiction, and while I still read a lot in both those genres, I also love social history and non-fiction about gender roles. I am consciously trying to read more books written by/about people of color, particularly in the fantasy genre (which is really, really hard). I review all the books I read on my blog, which I've been active on since graduating college.

I don't really know what I'd like to see here, either- just quality book-related chat and information about interesting literary events aroudn the city, maybe.

I'm Jon. Love the store. I secretly think of it as the Cemetery of Forgotten books from Carlos Ruiz Zafon's novels. Certainly a great solace from everyday life and good quiet place for reflection, and of course book hunting! Mostly read fiction, fantasy/YA, mystery. But I dabble in biographies as well as some spiritual stuff i.e. paolo coelho.

Currently reading The Art of Fielding as i'm hoping to participate in the discussion. Already finished Night Circus. Would love to see lots of book recs on the site and hope to participate in more cool events at the store.

Hello All!

I am Lizzy, and I work with Kevin at the Open Books store. I tend to be obsessive in my book collection, and I own multiple copies of all of Neil Gaiman's books, many of P.G. Wodehouse's books, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, and the Sherlock Holmes series. I love scifi/fantasy, old mysteries, and humor.

I'm super excited to hear from everyone! Thanks for the nice words, Jon- The Shadow of the Wind is one of my favorite books (though I only own two copies right now) and to see Open Books compared to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books is a thrill!!

Also, I would like to mention that dogs, cheeseburgers, and oxford commas are some of my favorite things.

Hi, everyone! I'm Laura and I volunteer at Open Books, too (and I have to get ready to go there in about 30 seconds...).

I'll read anything, but I have a soft spot for mysteries and a huge literary crush on Hercule Poirot. I spend a lot of time commuting so I listen to tons of audiobooks; I'm currently listening to Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry (I read The Giver last week).

I'm really excited to hear what everyone else is reading!

Hi, my name is Kate. I have donated and purchased a lot of books throughout the years to the Open Books book store.

I like to read a lot! I like fiction, creative non-fiction, memoir, essay and young adult. I'm trying to catch up on my reading this summer, but it's going slower than expected.

I'm currently reading Swamplandia! which is wonderfully dreamlike and encourages the reader to put aside reality for a while and use his/her powers of imagination.

Looking forward to joining the book discussion for The Night Circus as well!

See you around and stay cool!

Hi! My name is Meredith and I live really close to Open Books. I Love the idea that is supports literacy for children! I've bought quite a few books from there. I was ready Where we Belong by Emily Giffin (I won a pre advanced copy) and it was amazing! I'm deciding what to read next....

Hi, my name is Joan and I've been a volunteer at Open Books for close to two years. My main focus is fiction, but I also enjoy non-fiction (books about happiness and gratitude are high on my list). In general, I tend to like anything Kevin recommends. Recently, I fell in love with baseball and am taking a baseball literature course at the Newberry Library. Right now I'm reading The Natural (for my course), Caleb's Crossing and the poetry of Ted Kooser and Philip Levine. I look forward to expanding my reading genres through your recommendations!

Why, hello there. I'm Ann, and I'm a volunteer at Open Books (though not there nearly as often as I would like since I'm stuck in suburbia for my day-to-day). I'm usually reading at least one fiction and one non-fiction at a time (currently, "Jane" for funsies and the 40th Anniversary Edition of "Our Bodies, Ourselves" for blog research). The library calls my house every day (not exaggerating) with books to be picked up and that's not even mentioning my personally-owned stack of "to-read"s.

Hello Everyone. I am Shankar, work as an Orthopedic Surgeon in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. I have recently published my first book titled "A Kangaroo Court:A Triumph of Mediocrity". It is a fiction based on true events in my life. I went through traumatic, potentially devastating event in my life due to jealousy of some colleagues. It taught me several lessons and value of friendship.
I read a lot and particularly interested in Historical books. Mt next book is first of a series of books - Harappa - and is about to be published.
I have a diverse collection of books - over 1000 books!!

Hello Everyone,

My name is Amanda. Former City of Chicago resident. Now I live in Brookfield, IL and work in the Noble Square area. I really enjoy non-fiction and gobble up just about anything that has to do with the 1960's counter culture. I'm willing to give just about any book a shot. Not a big Sci-Fi/Mystery fan. Although, I have an alarming amount of "Fear Streets" I'm unwilling to part with.