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  <title><![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]></title>
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  <description><![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]></description>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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  <read_at>Fri Jan 30 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
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    <body><![CDATA[Well, this was NOT good... it receives its two stars for two things - good, detailed writing and the setting of Chicago.<br/>It must be the first book I have ever ADDED pictures to! I had to add a map of the wards and neighborhoods... I have lived in and around Chicago my whole life and I don't know...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/81866842">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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  <read_at>Sun May 24 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat May 16 19:20:45 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed May 27 21:09:14 -0700 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[Windy City by Scott Simon (pp. 384)<br/><br/>Might have be aptly renamed, Long Winded City.  Simon should get credit for knowing a lot about Chicago and being true to its details and its politics, but definitely gets downgraded for a lack of self-editing.   For those who know Chicago, there are 50...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/56328505">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
  <id>50745264</id>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Sat Apr 11 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat Mar 28 16:00:47 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Apr 12 11:00:36 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count>1</read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I enjoyed this book.  I enjoyed the characters.  It is about Chicago aldermen and the turmoil that follows the murder of the larger-than-life mayor.  It is about politics and how it works on the city level - snow removal, trash removal, permits, civic meetings, jobs.  It is about diversity, not only...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/50745264">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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</review>
      <review>
  <id>29955103</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Patrick]]></name>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
  </title>
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  <small_image_url>http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg</small_image_url>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>98</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
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</book>

    <rating>2</rating>
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  <date_added>Tue Aug 12 11:57:26 -0700 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Aug 12 12:41:47 -0700 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I wanted to love this book, but in the end, found myself more annoyed than anything else. It is a fair tour through the modern city of Chicago, and gives an idea of the politics, but the writing is simply grating. <br/>* The writer seems inordinately fond of lists: restaurants, cuisines, cultures, ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/29955103">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
  <published>2008</published>
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  <date_added>Mon Aug 04 07:08:29 -0700 2008</date_added>
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    <body><![CDATA[Looking through the doors of Chicago politics in the wake of murder. <br/><br/>Alderman Sundaram “Sunny” Roopini is rousted out of bed in the middle of the night to go to City Hall. When he gets there, he discovers his friend and colleague, the mayor of Chicago, died in his shorts over a midni...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/29199089">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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  <read_at>Sat Jun 28 00:00:00 -0700 2008</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Mar 19 06:29:51 -0700 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Jun 28 07:51:04 -0700 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I wavered between three and four stars. It was an entertaining book, interesting, and I added a lot of new words to my vocabulary. Scott Simon is obviously a very intelligent, detail-oriented person with a vast imagination and great ability to multi-task and juggle so many storylines. The story was ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/18085471">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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  <read_at>Wed Sep 10 06:23:47 -0700 2008</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Sep 07 15:28:58 -0700 2008</date_added>
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    <body><![CDATA[I always wanted Jed Bartlett to be my president. The West Wing crew would be his staff. And America would be a better place.<br/><br/>In that same vein, I want Windy City to be my kindler, gentler election process. I realize how incredibly unfeasible it is, but I've got high hopes, ya'll, for dive...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/32276033">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
  <id>41099378</id>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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  <read_at>Sat Jan 24 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Dec 28 12:10:01 -0800 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Jan 24 16:40:36 -0800 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[For an inside look at Chicago politics, this is an entertaining read.  However, I found the author's style of writing to be a bit cluttered and choppy.  The most well-rounded, and sympathetic, character of the book was the dead mayor - and he only appears in various flashbacks.  I didn't feel a real...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/41099378">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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  <read_at>Thu Feb 12 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat Feb 14 08:14:14 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Feb 14 08:34:56 -0800 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[just grabbed this off the shelf (as an ode to Gov. F-Bomb) and was totally pleasantly surprised.  Part humorous mystery, part political satire, part family dramatic fiction, part love letter to the spirit of Chicago.  Delightful characters and story overall! Loved it - totally made me cry!]]></body>
    
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
  <published>2008</published>
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  <read_at>Thu May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008</read_at>
  <date_added>Mon May 19 11:59:00 -0700 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Jun 26 13:31:06 -0700 2008</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[I just didn't love this book.  I even think I fell out of like with it along the way. It was waaaay too many pages for so little a story.  There's an attempt at a build up to some sort of climax, but it sort of falls flat and kind of limps down into a conclusion. It's all based on Chicago politics a...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/22561024">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/22561024]]></url>
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</review>
      <review>
  <id>61325364</id>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>98</ratings_count>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
  <published>2008</published>
</book>

    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat Jun 27 16:33:24 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Jun 27 16:35:23 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I read it on the way to Chicago to visit Emmy Lou.  The mayor of chicago is murdered and the vice-mayor, Sunny, a recent widower tries to hold it together.  I really enjoyed this look at chicago politics.  A bit overwritten, but a good read.]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
  <published>2008</published>
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    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Mon Mar 30 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
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    <body><![CDATA[The mayor of Chicago gets murdered, but this is more of a story about the politics of the situation rather than a mystery.  The characters are somewhat stereotypical, so your enjoyment will depend on how much you enjoy the process.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/51015729]]></url>
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      <review>
  <id>42575465</id>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>98</ratings_count>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
  <published>2008</published>
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    <rating>3</rating>
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  <read_at>Wed Jan 14 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat Jan 10 10:43:10 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri Jan 16 16:38:12 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[If you love Chicago you should read this book. Starts out fast; bogs down in the middle with too much political 'hot air', but ultimately it is a love letter to the city. I loved Sunny Roopini; he felt very real, like a neighbor or a friend. He is someone 'for whom to root.']]></body>
    
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      <review>
  <id>61830604</id>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>98</ratings_count>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
  <published>2008</published>
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    <rating>5</rating>
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  <read_at>Mon Jul 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Jul 01 18:33:02 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Mon Jul 06 20:34:53 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This is a completely engrossing, wonderful tale of politics in Chicago.  Written with a love of the city and all it faults.  The politicians are as human as can be with all the good intentions, faults, and slick tricks one would expect.  Warm and witty.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/61830604]]></url>
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</review>
      <review>
  <id>48423672</id>
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    <location><![CDATA[Alexandria, VA]]></location>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>98</ratings_count>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
  <published>2008</published>
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  <date_added>Fri Mar 06 09:52:32 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri Mar 06 09:54:11 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[ i have been reading this book for six months, not because it is horrible but because it was a bookclub choose and bookclub continues to be rescheduled.  Overall, it's relatively entertaining so far.]]></body>
    
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008</read_at>
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  <date_updated>Mon Jun 23 13:15:03 -0700 2008</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[This book shows a real feel for politics and a true love of Chicago.  Alderman Sunny Roopini is a great character, good enough to sustain our interest through some of the more melodramatic and predictable elements of the plot.  The other alderman, his children, his protector cop, and of course the M...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/25230288">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/25230288]]></url>
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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  <read_at>Sun Aug 02 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
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    <body><![CDATA[I was very drawn to the main character of this novel about Chicago politics which is what kept me going thru some sections which bogged down in the details of multicultural life in Chicago.  ]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Jan 21 16:13:34 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Jan 21 16:16:13 -0800 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[Humourous fiction.  It was about an alderman's progress from council person to temporary mayor.  I enjoyed the humor and basic story but there definetely was a lack of any kind of plot.]]></body>
    
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
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    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
  </description>
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  <date_added>Tue Jun 09 18:47:49 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Jun 09 18:49:05 -0700 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[I'm totally a Scott Simon groupie and love his essays on the radio!  But this book was thoroughly boring.  I made myself read it but I should have stopped after 10 pages.  Bummer.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59078590]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59078590]]></link>
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[Windy City: A Novel of Politics]]>
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  <average_rating>3.46</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>98</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[The acclaimed author of the intensely powerful novel <em>Pretty Birds</em>,<em> </em>Scott Simon now gives us a story that is both laugh-out-loud funny and heart-piercing&#8211;as sprawling and brawling as Chicago, where politics is a contact sport.<br/><br/>The mayor of Chicago is found in his office late at night, sitting in his boxer shorts, facedown dead in a pizza. The mayor was a hero and a rascal: dynamic, charming, ingenious, corruptible, and a masterly manipulator. The city mourns. But it&#8217;s discovered that the mayor was murdered&#8211;shortly after he may have begun to squeal on some of his colleagues at City Hall. Over the next four days, police race to find the mayor&#8217;s killer, while the politicians who bemoan his passing scramble for his throne. <br/><br/>At the center is Sundaran &#8220;Sunny&#8221; Roopini, forty-eight, alderman of the Forty-eighth Ward, and vice-mayor. Sunny is an Indian immigrant, a restaurant owner, and a recent widower. He is getting tired of politics and wants to hold on just long enough to do the best for his two restive teenage daughters. But as acting interim mayor for a few days, Sunny must deal with forty-nine<em> </em>other<em> </em>aldermen who have their own clashing ambitions.<br/>How will Sunny do what&#8217;s best for both his family and city in a time of crisis?<br/><br/>As The Last Hurrah embodied urban politics for a previous generation, <em>Windy City </em>captures politics in the multiethnic tumult of today&#8217;s big city, where a stalled subway raises fears of a terrorist attack and smoke-filled rooms are abolished by no-smoking statutes. The story takes a raft of colorful characters&#8211;pinky-ringed pols, pious reformers, money-grubbers, and wheeler-dealers of every creed, color, and proclivity&#8211;through City Hall corridors, neighborhood restaurants and clubs, weddings, sex scandals, gospel churches, police stations, and sting operations to deliver an ending that is unexpectedly noble.<br/><em><br/>Windy City</em> is a roller coaster of a novel that dips and soars through the amusement park of politics. With echoes of<em> Primary Colors</em> and<em> Thank You for Smoking</em>, <em>Windy City</em> will win votes as the best political novel in many years. Its personal story&#8211;about a flawed, decent man thrust suddenly under hot lights&#8211;will also win hearts.]]>
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    <rating>5</rating>
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  <read_at>Tue Oct 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Oct 28 05:45:13 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri Oct 30 07:04:24 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Great fun. This is just a delightful political novel that doesn't strain your brain but makes you smile. I think it's the best political novel since Primary Colors. ]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/75987275]]></url>
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