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Posts published in “Latest News”

What to Read for the Spookiest Season

The days draw in and the nights are long. The warmth and light of summer have vanished. It is the spooky season. This is the time of Trick or Treat, but also the time of older horrors and fears. And what better way to spend it than to read a

What to Read for Indigenous Peoples’ Day

To celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we’ve assembled a reading list highlighting the lives of Indigenous individuals and the history of their communities that have lived in the Americas for thousands of years. With these books, you can honor the story of a Canadian Indian residential school survivor, face our nation’s

Read an Interview with Poet Lindsay Turner, author of “The Upstate”

As we enter the relaunch of the Phoenix Poets series, we’re introducing the new editors and poets through a series of short interviews. Here, we spoke with Lindsay Turner, whose new book, The Upstate, is publishing this fall. Lindsay discusses her Appalachian roots, the events that shaped her new collection,

What to Read for Banned Books Week

This year, Banned Books Week arrives amidst a flood of attempts to remove books from schools and public libraries. Last week, reports from both the American Library Association and PEN America outlined the scale of these efforts. Comparing data from the first eight months of 2023 to the same period

Read an Excerpt from “Mountains of Fire” by Clive Oppenheimer

In Mountains of Fire: The Menace, Meaning, and Magic of Volcanoes, Clive Oppenheimer invites readers to stand with him in the shadow of an active volcano. Whether he is scaling majestic summits, listening to hissing lava at the crater’s edge, or hunting for the far-flung ashes from Earth’s greatest eruptions,

Read an Excerpt from “The Monetarists” by George S. Tavlas

The University of Chicago has a long, storied history within the field of economics. While Milton Friedman looms large within Chicago’s legacy, The Monetarists explores fellow scholars whose work and lives forever influenced and shaped modern economic thought. Read an excerpt below, introducing the incredible intellectual history that marks the

What to Read for National Hispanic Heritage Month

To celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month, we’ve put together a reading list highlighting the arts and lives of Hispanic individuals from a range of counties and traditions. With these books, you can explore the work of a brilliant Mexican painter, experimental Latin-American poetry, the life of a visionary biologist who

What to Read for National Hispanic Heritage Month

To celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month, we’ve put together a reading list highlighting the arts and lives of Hispanic individuals from a range of counties and traditions. This month, enjoy 30% off these print and e-books using the code HERITAGE30 on our website.    From the University of Chicago Press The

Six Questions with Anthony J. Martin, author of “Life Sculpted: Tales of the Animals, Plants, and Fungi That Drill, Break, and Scrape to Shape the Earth”

Meet the menagerie of life-forms that dig, crunch, bore, and otherwise reshape our planet. Did you know that elephants dig ballroom-sized caves alongside volcanoes? Or that our planet once hosted a five-ton dinosaur-crunching alligator cousin? In fact, almost since its fascinating start, life was boring. More than a billion years

Eleanor of Aquitaine Between History and Legend | A Guest Post from Karen Sullivan

In Eleanor of Aquitaine, as It Was Said: Truth and Tales about the Medieval Queen, Karen Sullivan invites readers on a literary journey through the stories about the famous medieval queen, in order to discover what even the most fantastical tales reveal about Eleanor and life as a twelfth-century noblewoman.

Read an Excerpt from “The Rise of the Masses” by Benjamin Abrams

August 14, 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of Egypt’s Rabaa Massacre, which sparked the beginning of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s reign of terror. Under el-Sisi’s command, Egyptian armed forces raided two camps of protesters in Cairo—one at al-Nahda Square and a larger group at Rabaa al-Adawiya Square. This horrific massacre claimed

A Harvest Time Reading List

So here it is, August, that time for the abundance you’ve been working on all summer. But now what? What are you going to do with all those tomatoes, string beans, and—worst of all—the dreaded zucchinis? We offer a selection of books that will tempt your palate and inspire you

Five Questions with Kevin J. Elliott, author of “Democracy for Busy People”

As election season draws ever closer, many voters face the dilemma of balancing being informed citizens with everyday responsibilities that impede their ability to participate in our nation’s government. In Democracy for Busy People, Kevin J. Elliott proposes new methods on how we can make democratic citizenship undemanding. Read on

Five Questions with Sam Stephenson and Alan Thomas about the Work of W. Eugene Smith

This year, the University of Chicago Press is publishing new editions of two stunning photography collections by famed American photographer W. Eugene Smith. We sat down with the author and editor of the books, Sam Stephenson, along with the Press’s editorial director, Alan Thomas, who brought these two books to

Read an Excerpt from “Disputed Inheritance” by Gregory Radick

In 1900, almost no one had heard of Gregor Mendel. Ten years later, he was famous as the father of a new science of heredity—genetics. Even today, Mendelian ideas serve as a standard point of entry for learning about genes. But in Disputed Inheritance: The Battle over Mendel and the

Skateboarders shred in Chicago’s Grant Park on Go Skate Day

On the longest day of the year, hundreds of people came to downtown Chicago with skateboards, scooters, and roller skates for Go Skate Day 2023. This audio postcard brings you to Grant Skate Park, to hear boarders stick some tricks and muse on what ska...