Past Events

An Off-White Christmas at 19th Century Club

Monday, December 16, 2019
Noon-2:30 p.m.

The Nineteenth Century Club
178 Forest Avenue
Oak Park, IL 60301

A staged reading of CLHOF founder Don Evans's story "Bah!" will be featured at the Nineteenth Century Club's regular Monday enrichment series. "Bah!" is one of 12 stories in his short story collection, An Off-Whte Christmas, which was just released as an audio and e-book. Kevin Theis, Savanna Rae, and Bryan Wakefield, all affilated with the…

CLHOF Appreciation Party: Board Members, Volunteers, Partners and Friends

Saturday, December 14, 2019
7-10 p.m.

Invitation Only

Venue TBA

A party to show our gratitude for all the support we've received throughout the year, from volunteers, to partners, to board members, to authors and scholars. There will be food, drink, and a plenty of conversation. At the party, we'll recap our 2019 accomplishments and unveil our 2020 calendar.

Great Chicago Books Club: Renée Rosen

Saturday, November 16, 2019
6:30-9 p.m.

Private Home

TBA

Our Great Chicago Books Club on Sunday, Sept. 29, will feature Renée Rosen's Windy City Blues the author’s historical novel exploring Chicago’s legendary Chess Records. The event will be held in a private Evanston home; we'll provide the location if you inquire or register. The first half of the evening is a cocktail…

2019 Chicago Literary Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Thursday, October 24, 2019
6-9 p.m.

Cliff Dwellers
200 S. Michigan Ave.
Penthouse (22nd Floor)
Chicago, IL 60604

The Chicago Literary Hall of Fame will induct its newest class of three writers on Thursday, Oct. 24 at Cliff-Dwellers, this event will be held at Cliff Dwellers. Though this is a private club, the event is open to the public. Reservations are required. Cost of dinner is $35; to reserve a seat for the program only…

Fuller Award: Sterling Plumpp

Thursday, September 19, 2019
7-9 p.m.

Poetry Foundation
61 W. Superior Street
Chicago, IL

Free; registration recommended.

Sterling Plumpp will receive the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame’s Fuller Award for lifetime achievement at a ceremony on Thursday, Sept. 19 at the Poetry Foundation. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is highly recommended. On hand to pay tribute will be a distinguished lineup of speakers and performers, including…

Now I Lay Me Down: Hemingway in Paris

Sunday, September 8, 2019
6-8 p.m.

Hamburger Mary's
155 S. Oak Park Ave.
Oak Park, IL 60302

Ernest Hemingway, native of Oak Park and inaugural inductee into the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame, recounted in A Moveable Feast his legendary travels and acquaintances as a struggling young author in 1920s Paris. June Sawers adapted the memoir, along with excerpts from his letters, to capture the essence of Hemingway’s experience in Paris…

Great Chicago Book Sale

Saturday, August 17, 2019
10 a.m.-3 p.m.

Euclid Avenue United Methodist Church
405 S. Euclid Ave.
Oak Park, IL 60302

This fundraiser will feature a large assortment of used books, including a large number of collectible copies. Among the Chicago authors who've signed books for this sale: Peter Anderson, Carol Anshaw, Elizabeth Berg, Rosellen Brown, Michael Burke, Daniel Burns, Susanna Calkins, Elizabeth Crane, Albert DeGenova, Rita Dragonette, Stuart Dybek,…

Great Chicago Books Club: Audrey Niffenegger

Sunday, July 28, 2019
5-7:30 p.m.

Chicago, IL
Private Home

TBA

Our Great Chicago Books Club on Sunday, July 28, will feature Audrey Niffeneggers’s The Time Traveler’s Wife, the author’s debut novel and a long-standing bestseller. The Newberry Library, which is the start of our Gold Coast Literary Tour, features prominently in the story. The evening begins with cocktails at five p.m.,…

Bughouse Square Debates

Saturday, July 27, 2019
12-4 p.m.

Washington Square Park
901 N. Clark Street
Chicago, IL

The Bughouse Square Debates are free and open to the public, and happening in conjunction with Newberry Library's annual book fair. The afternoon is an homage to Bughouse Square's history of lively debate and a celebration of free speech. No registration required. The Newberry always offers the CLHOF a free table to pass out our literature…

Nelson Algren and Wicker Park Literary Tour

Sunday, July 7, 2019
2:30-4 p.m.

Meet: Nelson Algren Statue, Polish Triangle at Division, Ashland, and Milwaukee Aves.
End: Lottie’s, 1925 W. Cortland, Chicago

The author of Chicago: City on the Make and The Man with the Golden Arm spent much of his life near the Polish Triangle, and both he and his characters bopped about the Wicker Park and Bucktown neighborhoods for many decades. On this walking tour, we’ll visit the places that figured prominently in Algren’s life and work, and investigate…