"A tightrope act between high-concept smut and feminist critique, Saenz makes a case for messy connection, even if it’s far more likely to kill you than going it alone." Nick Malone's review of “200 Monas” by Jan Saenz (@littlebrown.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/03/09/2...

At @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social, I looked at the depictions of motherhood in Gunk by Sara Sams. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/03/05/g...

So grateful to @gaylebrandeis.bsky.social for having this conversation with me! In about an hour, I’m heading down to pickles pub in Baltimore for the THFE’s first reading. Eek! #awp26

"Few authors understand the art of thrills like Daniel Kraus, and in Partially Devoured his knowledge is on full display. . . Partially Devoured is filled with grief, love, and fascination throughout every frame and word." — @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social chireviewofbooks.com/2026/03/02/1...

"We all have wounds we return to again and again on the page...Grief is one of mine." @gaylebrandeis.bsky.social's interview with @jillchristman.bsky.social on "The Heart Folds Early” @univnebpress.bsky.social is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/03/06/i...

Interested in flexing your writing muscles? Next week you can at our generative writing workshop on religion, spirituality, & faith with National Book Award finalist Andrew Krivák (The Sojourn, The Bear). Co-presented by @storystudiochicago.bsky.social Register at www.eventbrite.com/e/american-p...

If you're looking for a new Chicago literary event, look no further than the Chicago Literary Salon. Join authors Rowan Beaird, @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social, Nancy Johnson, and @melanieben.bsky.social for a conversation about fashion in historical fiction on 3/19. www.hastybooklist.com/hbl-store/fa...

"A fast-paced, compact novel that dives deep into questions of motherhood." @ianmacallen.bsky.social's review of “Gunk” by Saba Sams (@aaknopf.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/03/05/g...

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Registration is now open for the next event in our Writers on Writing series, in partnership with the Newberry Library! The event happens April 9 with Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Jennifer Egan in conversation with Michael Zapata. buff.ly/jCaeFz3

If you’re headed to AWP and want to avoid me, here are the two panels and one party to stay away from 🧵

"The whole idea of novelistic truth—the deeper truth—that’s what I’m looking for here: the truth that is truer than fact." @denisesrobbins.bsky.social's interview with @joukovsky.bsky.social on "Medium Rare” (@melvillehouse.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/03/04/m...

"There’s so much beauty in transition, in loss and gain. You have to catch it." Ryan Asmussen's interview with Jonathan Galassi on "The Vineyard” (@aaknopf.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/03/03/w...

This is going to be so fun!! Please join us if you're at AWP or happen to be in Baltimore for less chaotic reasons!

"An electric debut. . . . An utter delight from start to finish.” Many thanks to @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social for including Lisa Low's forthcoming collection, Replica, in their roundup of 12 must read books of March--and in such fantastic company! Check out the full round-up: tinyurl.com/a4s6pud4

We're excited to be co-hosting Jeff Boyd's Chicago launch of HARD TIMES (@flatironbooks.bsky.social)! Even more exciting: Jeff'll be in conversation with Chicago's own Rowan Beaird! You seriously (seriously!) don't want to miss this. Join us at the Book Cellar on 3/31 at 6:30pm!

The @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social has your 12 must-read books for March -- including REPLICA, the debut poetry collection by our Curriculum Coordinator Lisa Low!!! buff.ly/uQJjAIV #booksky

This month, we’re welcoming a wide range of exciting new releases that bend their genre conventions and chart a new path forward of possibility in literature, our EIC @mbwwelch.bsky.social writes. Check out the rest of his picks for March's best books below! chireviewofbooks.com/2026/03/02/1...

Headed to AWP next week? We (and our friends at @storystudiochicago.bsky.social) would be thrilled to see you! Come hear from CHIRB staff and StoryStudio instructors, AND get your books signed! www.storystudiochicago.org/storystudio-...

TONIGHT! Join us for our free panel with @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social celebrating the publication's 10 years. Panelists will discuss what makes a good review, the importance of book coverage these days, and how you can improve your chances to get your work reviewed. Register: buff.ly/aBC7HDS

Check out @mbwwelch.bsky.social on the @literaryhub.bsky.social podcast talking a few of our favorite things... Bookstores and libraries anybody? 🤩 lithub.com/celebrating-...

“The stories are folksy, a little retro and sensual, with multiple dips into earthy, furtive lesbian lust.” 5 book reviews you need to read this week.

Do you have questions about applying for StoryBoard? Our amazing Artistic Director @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social wrote you a personal letter answering all your FAQs! 🤩 Read here: buff.ly/sROWff5 #writingcommunity

Our table at the ABA Winter Institute! If you stopped by yesterday, you probably saw a new face behind the table. That’s me (Andrew), a new employee for Belt, helping out with marketing. It was great to meet both new and longtime fans of Belt, and to chat a bit about the year’s upcoming projects!

This is TONIGHT! This is FREE! All you need to do is register at the link below, and we can't wait to see you soon! us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

"Makes use of tools from a variety of genres." Ryan Teitman's review of “The Irish Goodbye” by Beth Ann Fennelly (@wwnorton.com) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/27/t...

@chicagorevbooks.bsky.social calls OUR DIARIES, OURSELVES "a joyful deep dive into this time-honored tradition of preserving who we are." On sale now from @beaconpress.bsky.social! chireviewofbooks.com/2026/01/07/n...

"Historical fiction, if it aims to do more than just entertain, is able to encourage the longer view." Ryan Asmussen's interview with Ian McGuire on "White River Crossing” (@crownpublishing.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/26/w...

I loved the collaborative mosaic aspect of this book. This review does a great job of encapsulating it.

Such a great book and such a great conversation!

"We want others to feel good because we understand the intensity of that same desire in ourselves." @pearsonality.bsky.social's interview with @bplatzer.bsky.social on "The Optimists” (@littlebrown.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/25/b...

"Rural spaces, especially agricultural ones, never let you forget that you exist in a body, that you won’t be around forever." @rsdeeren.bsky.social's interview with @saramaurerwrites.bsky.social on "A Good Animal” (@stmartinspress.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/25/w...

"I didn’t set out to write a likable character." Rich Text and the Tunnel Vision of Love: @rachellayown.bsky.social interviews Seán Hewitt about Open, Heaven (@aaknopf.bsky.social). ➡️ buff.ly/Ii3xRwC

You're cordially invited to join us this Friday at 6pm CT on Zoom for our Pub Crawl Final Panel -- a joint venture with our sibling publication, @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social, which is celebrating 10 years! This is free and open to everyone. Register here: buff.ly/aBC7HDS #booksky

"This is my most Southern novel...The characters are all unique, and some of them are larger than life, and they talk a lot of trash. They’re funny." @aaisforaarti.bsky.social's interview with @tayari.bsky.social on "Kin” (@aaknopf.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/24/t...

Yay Cynthia!! @cynthiapelayo.bsky.social 🥳🥳🥳

On this cold and blustery Chicago day, let's all dream of warm summer days ahead...and your writing plans for this summer, which hopefully including our StoryBoard Conference. Applications are open for just over another month. Apply now! buff.ly/3nQnSfF #writingcommunity

We recognize a good piece of writing when we see it, and this is a good piece of writing. 🧊🚫

"Both addictive and painful...each tale its own saturated, heavy narrative, weighted down with hope and hurt." Leah von Essen's review of “Brawler” by Lauren Groff (@riverheadbooks.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/24/_...

"Explores the idea of myth versus history." Aaron Coats's review of “The Storm” by Rachel Hawkins (@stmartinspress.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/23/p...

Deadline extended! Do you want to work on your novel with me? We’ll have one full year and we will meet in StoryStudio Chicago’s cozy living room each month and talk all things writing.

"Takes us behind the scenes of that assumption to look at the evolution of this “common” object, from practical, technological, and processual perspectives." Jessi Rae Morton's review of “Ballot” by Anjali Enjeti (@bloomsburyacademic.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/20/a...

@mbwwelch.bsky.social on the closing of Chicago’s Volumes Bookcafe and what we lose when we lose independent bookstores.

so grateful to @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social for their article revealing the cover of THE BOOK OF THE JAGUAR, my novel forthcoming from fairwood press (@patrickswenson.bsky.social)! preorder links in the article & in my bio 🙏🏼 chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/19/e...

Thinking a lot about this as B&N prepares to open a new bookstore in my neighborhood where the small stores are already struggling.

#BookSky 📚 💙

I’ve been so excited about this book and love the cover, so be sure to check it out!

Thoughts on the closing of Chicago's Volumes Bookcafe.

We’re excited to offer an exclusive cover reveal of Chicago Review of Books Daily Editor @celldeathvic.bsky.social's forthcoming debut novel, The Book of the Jaguar (Fairwood Press, August 18, 2026)! Check it out below 😍 and join us in congratulating Victor! chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/19/e...

"The plot and mysteries are engaging, the characters are complex, the moralities ambiguous and thought-provoking." Philip Janowski's review of “Last Seen” by Christopher Castellani (@vikingbooks.bsky.social) is out now. chireviewofbooks.com/2026/02/19/l...