Category: Store Events

  • Yuriy Tarnawsky Reads from The Placebo Effect Trilogy with Eckhard Gerdes 5/16

    tarnawskyIn Ukrainian-American novelist Yuriy Tarnawsky’s new trilogy The Placebo Effect (JEF Books), the themes of alienation, abandonment, and fear of death, developed in Like Blood in Water and elaborated in The Future of Giraffes, respectively the first and second book of The Placebo Effect Trilogy, are picked up in the third book, View of Delft, and are given a new treatment.

    Yuriy Tarnawsky has authored more than two dozen books of poetry, fiction, drama, essays, and translations.  He is one of the founding members of the New York Group, a Ukrainian émigré avant-garde group of writers, and cofounder and co-editor of the journal Novi Poeziyi (New Poetry; 1959–1972). He writes fiction, poetry, plays, translations, and criticism in both Ukrainian and English. His works have been translated into French, German, Hebrew, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, and Russian. An engineer and linguist by training, he has worked as a computer scientist at IBM Corporation and professor of Ukrainian literature and culture at Columbia University. He writes in Ukrainian and English and resides in the New York City area. His other English-language books include the books of fiction Meningitis, Three Blondes and Death, Like Blood in Water (all FC2), and Short Tails (JEF Books), as well as the play Not Medea (JEF).

    Tarnawsky takes risks most writers wouldn’t dream of.  Just when you think you’re on familiar ground, the earth begins to shake.  His writing rocks! —Derek Pell

    Novelist and poet Eckhard Gerdes will also be  reading from some of his recent work.

    Fri, May 16th, 7 pm – Free Event

    For more info: egerdes(at)experimentalfiction(dot)com

    To find this event on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/262105330638172/

  • Quimby's Welcomes The Barf Zine Tour Brings a One-Woman Play and To-The-Point Readings on Food, Bodies and Eating Disorders 4/22

    barfzineThe Barf Zine is making its way across the Midwest bringing you rarely discussed blunt analysis, and personal anecdotes about body image, food, eating disorders, and radical identities!
    For far too long activists, communists, anarchists, feminists, and queers have turned a blind eye to issues of body dysphoria, fatphobia, and eating disorders. Our insistence that these problems exist only in the normative culture silences the very real comrades, friends, lovers in our community who struggle daily.
    Come listen to personal narratives from people in these diverse communities that are tired of being quiet. We are speaking out, and we want you to listen!
    As an extra special treat, the Barf Zine Tour is pleased to welcome zine contributor Gus Allis and her short, one woman play entitled “I Thought Fat Girls Were Supposed to be Funny?” along for the ride. Through an intense, darkly funny, brutal monologue, Allis addresses the audience and forces them to examine the effects of fatphobia on one woman’s life.
    For more info: katepleuss(at)gmail(dot)com // thebarfzinetour.tumblr.com

    4/22/14 7pm at Quimby’s Bookstore, 1854 W. North Ave, Chill 60622

    Find the Facebook event post for this event here.

  • Gregory Benton Brings B+F to Quimby's 3/22

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    Gregory Benton’s book B+F was awarded the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art’s inaugural Award of Excellence at MoCCAFest 2013. An expanded version of B+F was published in the autumn of 2013 through AdHouse Books (USA) and Editions ça et la (France).

    B+F is a wordless meditation on goodwill, hostility, and isolation. It’s a fable, a meandering tale of two friends that explores an otherworldly forest with a naked woman “F” and a large yellow dog “B” as they encounter its denizens, both benevolent and malicious. The characters are pulled apart by circumstance and the obstacles that they must overcome to find each other again.

    Gregory has embarked on a nation-wide tour in support of B+F. He is excited to add Quimby’s of Chicago to the list of stores he is visiting. He’ll be “dedicating” books to customers, meaning that he’ll spend time with each customer drawing in their books, more common in the European comics festival tradition.

    Gregory Benton has been making comix since 1993. He cut his teeth on the political anthology World War 3, moving on to writing and drawing stories for Nickelodoeon, Vertigo, DC Comics, Disney Adventures, Watson-Guptil, Entertainment Weekly, as well as contributing to numerous alternate-press comix anthologies. A graphic novel, Hummingbird, was published by Slave Labor Graphics in 1996. Gregory has also produced numerous limited-edition mini-comix. Hopefully you have some. His illustrations have appeared in The New York Times, The Village Voice and Fortune, among others.

    Details:
    B+F
    64 4C pages
    10 ” x 15 ” HC
    $24.95 US funds
    ISBN 978-1-935233-25-1

    For more info: gregorybenton.com

    Click here to read an interview with Gregory Benton.

    gregorybentonauthorphoto

    (author photo credit to Seth Kushner)

    Saturday, March 22nd, 7pm

    Click here to see the Facebook event post for this event.

  • Hillary Chute Discusses Outside the Box: Interviews with Contemporary Cartoonists 4/19

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    We are living in a golden age of cartoon art. Never before has graphic storytelling been so prominent or garnered such respect: critics and readers alike agree that contemporary cartoonists are creating some of the most innovative and exciting work in all the arts.

    For nearly a decade Hillary L. Chute has been sitting down for extensive interviews with the leading figures in comics, and with Outside the Box: Interviews With Contemporary Cartoonists (University of Chicago | 272 pages | 39 color plates, 31 halftones | 7 x 10) she offers readers a chance to share her ringside seat. Chute’s in-depth discussions with twelve of the most accomplished artists and writers in comics today reveal a creative community that is richly interconnected yet fiercely independent, its members sharing many interests while working with wildly different styles and themes. Chute’s subjects run the gamut of contemporary comics practice, from those of underground pioneers like Art Spiegelman and Lynda Barry, to the analytic work of Scott McCloud, the journalism of Joe Sacco, and the extended narratives of Alison Bechdel and Charles Burns. They reflect on their experience and innovations, the influence of peers and mentors, the reception of their art and the growth of critical attention, and the crucial place of print amid the encroachment of the digital age.

    “This is a book of great interviews with great cartoonists. The interviews are great because Hillary Chute is great. She knows how cartooning works and she intimately knows the work of the artists she’s interviewing. The interviews are smart, insightful, and very readable. This isn’t dry stuff nor is it fluffy. It’s the real stuff. Anyone interested in the minds of today’s cartooning masters will want to read it.” –Seth, author of Palookaville

    Hillary L. Chute is the Neubauer Family Assistant Professor of English at the University of Chicago and the author of Graphic Women: Life Narrative and Contemporary Comics.

    For more info:

    press.uchicago.edu

    Levi Stahl, promotions director, University of Chicago Press; lstahl(at)press(dot)uchicago.edu or 773 702 0289.

    Sat, Apr 19th, 7pm – Free Event

  • Off-Site: Chicago Zine Fest 5th Anniversary, March 14th-15th

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    Chicago Zine Fest, an annual celebration of self-publishing efforts, celebrates its 5th anniversary! It’s an independent event creating an outlet for small press and independent publishers to showcase their work with the aim to make DIY zine-making accessible, highlight the talents of self-published artists, and give independent artists a chance to interact and swap skills. Quimby’s is happy to be one of the sponsors!

    Friday, March 14th

    Zine Panel, Columbia College’s Conaway Center (1104 S. Wabash), 1-3pm
    In it for the Long Haul: A Discussion on Longevity in Zines with Cindy Crabb, Tomas Moniz, and Alex Wrekk, moderated by Quimby’s Bookstore manager Liz Mason.

    Youth Zine Reading and an Exhibitor Zine Reading, Hairpin Arts Center (2800 N. Milwaukee), 6-9pm

    Kickoff Celebration Dance Party, Hairpin Arts Center (2800 N. Milwaukee) 9-11:30pm
    Music provided by CHIRP Radio.

    Saturday, March 15th

    Tabling Exhibition, Columbia College’s Conaway Center (1104 S. Wabash), 11am-6pm
    Over 200 zinesters will exhibit their publications, host workshops, and lead panel discussions in the spirit of self-publishing. Saturday’s exhibition will be supported with programming throughout the day. There are workshops on various self-publishing topics, hands-on kid’s zine-making area, button making presented by Busy Beaver Buttons, photo booth by Glitter Guts, an exclusive Brain Frame comics reading, plus demonstrations presented by staff and students from Columbia’s Center for Book and Paper Arts. Come to the Quimby’s table and say hi!

    “We are so excited that enthusiasm has grown for the fest in these first 5 years, and hope it continues to grow!” says Leslie Perrine, an original festival organizer. She adds, “I’m honored to be the only 5th year organizer still involved with the zine fest. I’ve seen it from our very first fundraiser to now an event people tell me they love…It’s really exciting to see the evolution of the fest. Remembering where we have come from has always been important to us as well.”

    An organizing goal for the 2014 fest was to welcome new exhibitors. Over 1/3 of all registered tables are first time festival exhibitors. Registration for the fest sold out in a record two hours, trumping 2013 which took 15 hours to close. “The support that CZF has gotten from zine writers and comic artists throughout the country has been astounding,” said Jaclyn Miller, in her second year as organizer.

    The Chicago Zine Fest is sponsored by the Book and Paper Center at Columbia College Chicago, Quimby’s Bookstore, Chicago Publishers Resource Center, the Hairpin Arts Center, CHIRP Radio and 826CHI. All 2014 artwork is by Chicago artist and illustrator Marnie Galloway.

    For more info and specifics, see chicagozinefest.org.

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  • Valentine Trauma Zine Release Party & Reading With Mike McBeardo McPadden and Friends 2/22

    traumazine190s legends Mike McBeardo McPadden (Happyland) and his inimitable bride, Rachel Shitass McPadden (Saucy), are returning ceremoniously to their beloved motherland, Zine City USA, with the release of Trauma Zine No. 1: Valentine’s Day.

    Expanding on the concept of their popular 2012-2013 Rock Trauma reading series, quarterly Trauma Zine incorporates personal essays and original art from talents across the country to communicate an empathetically (or just pathetically) tragic theme.  And contains stickers.

    So napalm another Hallmark-fabricated love (gross) day, then join us the following weekend for complimentary 70%-off Walgreen’s chocolate hearts and brief, cringe-y readings from such Valentine Trauma contributors as: Mike McBeardo McPadden (author Heavy Metal Movies, head writer Mr. Skin), Rachel McPadden (xoJane, Saucy, Self-Hate Crime), Diana Jewell (lovechild of Tura Satana & Oliver Reed), Sarah Rosenfeld (Windy City Rock), Bob Goblin (Outburst on the 66, RockStarClub, Rock Trauma alum), and Jeremy Kitchen (CPL).

    May you meet your future ex-wives/husbands that fateful night and forever curse our names.

    For more info: traumazine(at)gmail(dot)com

    Saturday, February 22nd, 7pm – Free Event

    Click here for Facebook Event Listing for this event.

  • Jim Mitchell discusses The Walrus and The Elephants: John Lennon’s Years of Revolution 2/13

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    Author and journalist Jim Mitchell will discuss his recently released The Walrus and the Elephants: John Lennon’s Years of Revolution. Jim will be speaking about John Lennon’s early years of social activism, his music with the progressive New York band Elephant’s Memory, and Lennon’s special relationship with Ann Arbor.

     

    Based entirely on new interviews and research, The Walrus and the Elephants is the first book about John Lennon to show how his emergence as a solo artist, his embrace of radical politics and feminism, and his love affair with New York City coincided. From controversial television appearances, to benefit concerts, to his new, post-Beatlemania band Elephant’s Memory, Walrus and the Elephants is Lennon’s story told by a cast of close friends and fellow activists from his Greenwich Village days.

     

    JAMES A. MITCHELL is the author of But for the Grace: Profiles in Peace from a Nation at War, the story of an orphanage in Sri Lanka’s war-torn northeast; rock biography It Was All Right: Mitch Ryder’s Life in Music; and tales from a rural newspaper, Applegate: Freedom of the Press in a Small Town. A reporter and editor for more than twenty years, his writing has appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The Humanist, and Starlog.

     

    “The Walrus and The Elephants is an indispensable window into an amazing time in American history and the history of rock and roll.” —Danny Goldberg, author of Bumping Into Geniuses

    For more info:

    The book at publisher Seven Stories’ site.

    The Facebook event invite.

    To arrange an interview with James Mitchell, please contact Ruth Weiner at ruth(at)sevenstories(dot)com or (212)-226-8760.

    Thursday, February 13th, 7pm – Free Event

  • David Witter reads from Chicago Magic: A History of Stagecraft & Spectacle 2/15

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    In David Witter’s new book Chicago Magic: A History of Stagecraft & Spectacle (The History Press), he keeps track of the shell game of Chicago’s fascinating magic history from its vaudeville circuit to its contemporary resurgence. By the end of America’s “Golden Age of Magic,” Chicago had taken center stage in front of an American audience drawn to the craft by the likes of Harry Houdini and Howard Thurston. Cashing in on a craze that rivaled big-band mania, magic shops and clubs sprang up everywhere across the Windy City, packed in customers and put down roots. Over the last century, for example, Magic, Inc. has outfitted magicians from Harry Blackstone Sr. to Penn and Teller to David Copperfield. Magic was an integral part of Chicago’s culture, from its earliest venture into live television to the card sharps and hucksters lurking in its amusement parks and pool halls.

    David Witter is a Chicago historian and author of the book Oldest Chicago. A native Chicagoan, he attended Louisa May Alcott School (the same grammar school as Marshall Brodien), Lane Technical High School, Columbia College (BA in writing) and Northeastern Illinois University (BA in secondary education). Also a freelance writer and photographer, he is a regular contributor to New City and Fra Noi. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Reader, Living Blues, The Best of the Chicago Blues Annual, the Bay Area Music Magazine, the Copley News Syndicate and Lerner Newspapers.

    For more info: danielle.raub(at)historypress(dot)net

    Click here for Facebook event posting for this event.

    Saturday, February 15th, 7pm – Free Event at Quimby’s Bookstore

  • Michael DeForge Talks About Ant Colony 2/8

    anttour-chicagoOn Saturday, February 8th, at 7pm, join Quimby’s and Drawn and Quarterly for the launch of Michael DeForge’s darkly existential graphic novel Ant Colony! In just a few short years, DeForge’s singular, idiosyncratic style has made him an important new voice in alternative comics. Here, he will present a slideshow with a signing to follow.

    Ant Colony follows the denizens of a black ant colony under attack from the nearby red ants: from its opening pages, DeForge immerses the reader in a world of false prophets, unjust wars, and corrupt police officers. On the surface, Ant Colony tells the story of this war, the destruction of a civilization, and the ants’ all-too-familiar desire to rebuild. Underneath, though, Ant Colony plumbs the deepest human concerns – loneliness, faith, love, apathy, and more. DeForge’s striking visual sensibility – stark lines, dramatic color choices, and brilliant use of page and panel space – stands out in this volume.

     

    ANTCOLONY_cover

    More info about Michael DeForge:

    http://michaeldeforge.wordpress.com/

    http://kingtrash.com/

    Click here to see Facebook event invite.

    Also! Santullo’s Eatery down the street (1943 W. North Ave) has generously agreed to provide pizza for the occassion! For more info about their delicious New York style pizza see santullos.com.

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  • Quimby’s Zlumber Party 1/11/14 – 1/12/14

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    Hey zinesters and mini-comics artists! Come to our Zine Slumber Party (Zlumber Party, geddit? Gosh we’re clever.) This is the third year in a row we’re inviting you to come in and spend the night with us working on your zine, because we had so much fun doing it in the past. The store closes at 10pm on Sat the 11th and then you’re invited to spend the night here. So bring yer jammies and a sleeping bag, then leave in the morning with the zine you worked on. Interested in attending? Just so we can have a head count, be sure to shoot a regular ol’ e-mail our way at info(at)quimbys(dot)com, call us at 773-342-0910 or respond that you’re coming at our Facebook event posting here.

    Sat, Jan 11th 9pm – Sun Jan 12th, 9am