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6th out of 9 books
—
2 voters
Chicago Stories: 40 Dramatic Fictions
Chicago Stories, 40 dramatic fictions by Michael Czyzniejewski, acclaimed author and Wrigley Field beer vendor, each told in the persona of a famous Chicagoan, from Mrs. O'Leary to Barack Obama.
"Flexing impressive literary chops, the beer vendor/creative-writing professor captures both the tough, defensive exterior and the vulnerable, often-broken heart of his city."
— Tim...more
"Flexing impressive literary chops, the beer vendor/creative-writing professor captures both the tough, defensive exterior and the vulnerable, often-broken heart of his city."
— Tim...more
Paperback, 1, 160 pages
Published
April 1st 2012
by Curbside Splendor Publishing Inc.
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"An absurdist Chi-town Spoon River Anthology on crack, Mike Czyzniejewski's Chicago Stories is an explosion of imagination, a relentless churn of intellect and wit. In true Chicago style, this book tells it straight to your face and pulls no punches. Chicago Stories is easily the most fun I've had reading in quite some time."
— Alan Heathcock author of VOLT
"In Chicago Stories, Michael Czyzniejewski channels Studs Terkel's Division Street, the voices so singular and complete that in the end you...more
— Alan Heathcock author of VOLT
"In Chicago Stories, Michael Czyzniejewski channels Studs Terkel's Division Street, the voices so singular and complete that in the end you...more
Chicago Stories: 40 Dramatic Fictions
is a fun little collection of monologues (it cries out to be staged--that's a show I would pay money to see), one about which I find it difficult to be objective: having grown up in the Chicago area, I am deeply familiar with most of the book's characters; the late-20th-century ones were the stuff of the nightly news and urban legend when I was a kid, and the historical figures and inanimate objects given voice were part of the cultural air I breathed. Thus...more
Czyzniejewski presents stories that are inventive and entertaining at the same time that they paint a comprehensive portrait of the essence of Chicago. I've only been to Chicago a few times and only know so much about it (occasionally taking a moment to familiarize myself with someone talking who an average Chicago resident would probably be horrified that I didn't know immediately), but the stories felt true to Chicago at the same time that some of them were delightfully insane. I mean, Pat Saj...more
I read this between last night and this morning. These "stories" are beautiful little monologues that, more than anything else, shares the author's passion for a city: whether that passion manifests itself as anger, melancholy, or simple pride depends on the narrator. Imaginative and funny throughout, this little collection is full of surprises. Who would have thought Hilary Clinton had blood lust? Or that Gill Scott Heron would like to put a curse on R Kelly? Or that Roger Ebert and Oprah Winfr...more
A collection of fabulist short-shorts, told in the voices of famous Chicagoans. Some of the stories went a little over my head, because I don't know Chicago that well, but if you're interested in reading Obama recounting bowling perfect game, Ron Santo narrating a Cubs World Series parade, Hugh Hefner talking about sex in the afterlife, or Dennis Rodman describing his final tattoo, and other such amusing pieces, then this is a book for you. Also, the author is a Creative Writing Professor who sp...more
Czyzniejewski is a beautiful writer full of wit and charm, and with this collection he has not only written with great verve and flash, but he has written about any number of disparate Chicago characters whose stories you cannot help but lose yourself in because like all great writers Czyzniejewski has made it so.
More - http://thenextbestbookblog.blogspot.c...
More - http://thenextbestbookblog.blogspot.c...
a week after reading this, i'm still undecided whether this collection would pack the same punch for a non-chicagoan as it would for a denizen of the city. much of chicago's history & colorful characters are here, woven in incredibly short & unexpected narratives. i was amused, and even moved, by many of them - but then again, i'm kinda biased: i freakin' love my hometown.
favorites included:
“Jean Baptiste Point du Sable Settles at the Mouth of the Cuyahoga River”
"The Water Tower Suffers...more
favorites included:
“Jean Baptiste Point du Sable Settles at the Mouth of the Cuyahoga River”
"The Water Tower Suffers...more
Check out my literary podcast, SummerBooks, with co-host Natalie Sypolt to see what we have to say about this book. Find us on iTunes or at summerbooks.podbean.com.
It must be said how incredibly delightful these monologues are. They are almost all very funny and a good number of them are likewise poignant and striking. But like most flash fiction, to me, it is too often too little. And like a snippet from McSweenies online, many of the great pieces of humor have little else to them--there is a knowing nod and a smirk, but nothing underneath. Which sounds so critical, though I do not mean it that way. I recommend this to everyone who likes delightful flash...more
My full discussion of Chicago Stories: 40 Dramatic Fictions can be found at www.summerbooks.podbean.com.
I got an early copy at AWP. Super-fun collection, awesome bathtub book.
Curbside Splendor is publishing this in spring 2012 and it's totally awesome.
Quirky, funny, inventive and odd. Read with Wikipedia at hand. :)
I finally got my hands on Michael Czyzniejewski's new book and I am blown away. The structure is so fresh and novel that it would have made Vonnegut stand up and take notice. You can tell that when Mike writes, he is setting large challenges for himself and overcoming them subordinate clause by subordinate clause. I am very proud to have been taught what real fiction is by this man but even more proud to call him my friend. Great job Mike!
May 15, 2013
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Short Storyshort
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“My standards were, after all, abnormally high." - the fictional ghost of Hugh Hefner, lamenting on sex in the after-life.”
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