Welcome

We would like to take another opportunity to share our immense gratitude for the wonderful community of readers and neighbors who have continued to support Unabridged Bookstore. Thanks to all of you, this June has been one of the most successful months in Unabridged history! It is because of your support that we are now able to make a contribution of 10% of the month’s sales to the Equal Justice Initiative. We would like to thank Bryan Stevenson and EJI for their work in “challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.” To learn more about EJI, please click here!

As previously stated, we believe that Reading is Resistance, and that our effort of sharing literature with our community is necessary work. A significant portion of the books sold this month are featured in our Anti-Racist Reading List, or are titles written about racial justice, our nation’s history of inequality, policing, and other systemic injustices. We are proud to be part of a community taking an active interest in this movement, and acknowledge our responsibility to this community. As we celebrate Pride this month, with marches instead of parades, we remember the Stonewall Riots that sparked the movement for gay liberation and the push for LGBTQ+ rights in our country. We remember the debt that is owed to the transgender women and men, and to the BIPOC members of our queer community who have historically been silenced, and suffered most due to police violence, refusal of rights, and poverty.

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As part of our yearlong commitment to promoting the work of activists and organizations engaged in the fight against systemic racism, social injustice, sexism, homophobia, and transphobia, we choose to support these two organizations in the month of July:

Following the 1968 call for a “revolution of values” in America by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and others, Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, led by Reverend Willaim Barber II  and Liz Theoharis, works to bring people together “to confront the interlocking evils of systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, militarism and the war economy, and the distorted moral narrative of religious nationalism. We understand that as a nation we are at a critical juncture — that we need a movement that will shift the moral narrative, impact policies and elections at every level of government, and build lasting power for poor and impacted people.” For more information and to offer your own support to Poor People’s Campaign, click here!

“Brave Space Alliance is the first Black-led, trans-led LGBTQ Center located on the South Side of Chicago, dedicated to creating and providing affirming, culturally competent, for-us by-us resources, programming, and services for LGBTQ individuals on the South and West sides of the city. We strive to empower, embolden, and educate each other through mutual aid, knowledge-sharing, and the creation of community-sourced resources as we build toward the liberation of all oppressed peoples.” For more information and to offer your own support to Brave Space Alliance, click here!

We invite you to join us to support Poor People’s Campaign and Brave Space Alliance as they work to achieve meaningful and lasting change in our community. We ask that you continue to support LGBTQ+ authors, to read books by BIPOC writers, and to read and resist!

Thank you,

Unabridged Bookstore

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We are so excited to welcome you back to Unabridged!  We are open daily 10am - 7pm with limited capacity.  And just so you know you can still order online and pickup your order in the store or have it shipped UPS.  (Remember to always look for an email confirming your order is ready for pickup before coming to the store, thanks!)  Since the health and safety of our employees and customers is of paramount importance, so we are taking extra precautions at the store and implementing new health and safety measures in accordance with the City of Chicago & the State of Illinois guidelines. 

NEW GUIDELINES

- All customers MUST wear a mask inside of the store.

- Hand sanitizer and gloves (optional) will be provided at the door and at checkout.

- Social Distancing will remain in place in store for customers and staff.

- A limited number of customers will be allowed in the store at any given time.  Please wait on the marked spots outside if we are at capacity.  We may ask you to limit your time in the store when others are waiting. 

- Each morning we do a thorough cleaning of the store along with cleaning touch points throughout the day.

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June Hardcover Book of the Month
Parakeet
by Marie-Helene Bertino

Ambivalent brides and bad mothers are not usually the stuff of novels I fall in love with, but Parakeet blew me away. Marie-Helene Bertino’s protagonist is a woman a week out from marrying a man she doesn’t love, whose dead grandmother has come back to taunt her in the form of a wisecracking bird right before a wedding she dreads. At once funny and devastating, smart and tender, tough and weird, what the NYT called “a Homeric quest to reclaim control over the heroine’s own life and sanity,” Parakeet is about forgiveness, identity, trauma and loss, a story that is disquieting and darkly comic, with a protagonist who is vulnerable and true, struggling with social conventions and her own sense of self. Bertino’s sharp, staccato prose crackles with insight, and several gut-wrenching scenes startle and kick you in the gut. Quirky and memorable, Ed loved and highly recommends!

June Hardcover Book of the Month
Tokyo Ueno Station
by Yu Miri

This wonderfully strange and affecting novel is narrated by a voice from the dead. Kazu, a construction worker from Fukushima, has died and his ghost is doomed to haunt Tokyo’s Ueno Park. Unlike most ghost stories from the traditional horror genre, Miri relies less on fright and more on nuance and tenderness. Through the splintered narrative, Miri explores many themes framed by a narrative of loss; the death of family members, the chasmic divide between the wealthy and the poor, the mistreatment of homeless populations, and the regrets of a life only half-lived. Melancholy and dream-like, this slim but poignant book is a wonder to read. Shane loves!

June Paperback Book of the Month
The Nickel Boys
by Colson Whitehead

June Paperback Book of the Month
The Yellow House
by Sarah M. Broom

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Check out our new tab on our website to browse some of our books online.

Click to Browse!

Iconic local artist David Lee Csicsko, the creator of our latest tote bag designs, stopped by to sign copies of The Skin You Live In!

With the ease and simplicity of a nursery rhyme, this lively story delivers an important message of social acceptance to young readers. Themes associated with child development and social harmony, such as friendship, acceptance, self-esteem, and diversity are promoted in simple and straightforward prose. Vivid illustrations of children's activities for all cultures, such as swimming in the ocean, hugging, catching butterflies, and eating birthday cake are also provided. This delightful picturebook offers a wonderful venue through which parents and teachers can discuss important social concepts with their children. Published by Chicago Children's Museum, written by Michael Tyler, and illustrated by our friend David Lee Csicsko!

Looking for the perfect gift? Take a look at our new coffee mugs, available now for $8.99! Or one of our four totes - each bag is $14.99, buy one and get 10% off your purchase when you visit in the future. Available for in-store pickup only, click below to order!