Janis Joplin Retrospective Friday, September 17 at 7:00 pm. Joplin biographer Holly George-Warren will discuss aspects of Janis's personality seldom brought to light. Commonly viewed as one of the "3Js" who met their deaths at the age of 27, Jimmi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and Janis, George-Warren presents Janis as a self contained artist who directed her own show.After the speaker, listen to Joplin tribute band Cheap Thrills as they provide music by Janis and other 1970's artists.$20 tickets are available by clicking on Eventbrite (search for Janis Joplin Retrospective) or $30 at the door.

David's excellent biography of John Mellencamp is not your average rock star bio! Expect to hear insightful commentary on how Mellencamp deals with life and death issues and transforms them into song. The new paperback version of Mellencamp: American Troubadour, retailing for $27.95 on Amazon, will be available for purchase for $20, and the author will be happy to autograph your copy.

Bill Savage is the co-editor of the 50th anniversary critical edition of Algren’s The Man with the Golden Arm, and provided annotations for the 60th anniversary edition of Chicago: City on the Make. Savage teaches Chicago literature, history, and culture at Northwestern University and the Newberry Library of Chicago.

Meet Richard Bales,

the preeminent

scholar on Algren's

"Lost" works. Bales is

the author of newly

published The Short

Writings of Nelson Algren:

A Study of His

Stories, Essays, Articles, Reviews, Poems

and Other Literature.