Books by Medill Alumni
The Feather Detective: Mystery, Mayhem, and the Magnificent Life of Roxie Laybourne
Chris Sweeney (MSJ08) “The Feather Detective: Mystery, Mayhem, and the Magnificent Life of Roxie Laybourne” tells the fascinating and remarkable true story of the world’s...
Read MoreA Life of the Party
Dave Schechter (MSJ78) “A Life of the Party” is a work of historical fiction about a Jewish woman who devoted four-plus decades of her life...
Read MoreThe Perfect Stranger
Brian Pinkerton (MSJ90) Everyone loves Alison, the new remote employee at a major energy company. She’s a rising star in the virtual workspace, displaying incredible...
Read MoreA German Jew’s Triumph: Fritz Oppenheimer and the Denazification of Germany
Cindy Handler (BSJ79) When Prussian soldier Fritz Oppenheimer left the WWI battlefield with two Iron Crosses, he could never have imagined that the pinnacle of...
Read MoreThe Last Ferry Out
Andrea Bartz (BSJ08, MSJ08) When Abby sets foot on Isla Colel, she isn’t sure what—if anything—she’ll find. She only knows that she needs to see...
Read MoreA Season on the Mat: Dan Gable and the Pursuit of Perfection
Nolan Zavoral (MSJ69) In “A Season on the Mat (Dan Gable and the Pursuit of Perfection),” the author takes the reader through the last season...
Read MorePoisoning the Well
Rachel Frazin (BSJ19) This is the shocking true-life story of how PFAS—a set of toxic chemicals most people have never heard of—poisoned the entire country....
Read MoreReading for Our Lives
Maya Payne Smart (MSJ05) Today’s children face intense pressure to meet rising academic standards and prepare for future careers, but most fall dangerously short. Early...
Read MoreJustice Batted Last
Don Zminda (BSJ70) “Justice Batted Last: Ernie Banks, Minnie Miñoso, and the Unheralded Players Who Integrated Chicago’s Major League Teams” tells the story of the...
Read MoreGentleman Jack and Rough Rufus: The Rise of Black American Wrestling
Ian Douglass (MSJ2006) “Gentleman Jack and Rough Rufus: The Rise of Black American Wrestling” is a biography by Ian Douglass (MSJ ’06) about two Black...
Read MoreSpell Freedom: The Underground Schools That Built The Civil Rights Movement
Elaine Weiss (MSJ74) The gripping story of four social justice activists whose audacious plan to restore voting rights to Black Americans in the Jim Crow...
Read MoreKen Morrow
Allan Kreda (MSJ88) All hockey players dream of hoisting the Stanley Cup and winning a gold medal for their home country. Ken Morrow was the...
Read MoreGreen Gold
Monique Parsons (MSJ89) The avocado is the quintessential symbol of aspirational living, a ubiquitous agricultural favorite, and the driver of an $18 billion global industry....
Read MoreThe Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club
Martha Hall Kelly (MSJ81) 2016: Thirty-four-year-old Mari Starwood is still grieving after her mother’s death as she travels to the storied island of Martha’s Vineyard,...
Read MoreLead Like an Editor
Victor Maze (MSJ03) In today’s crowded marketplace, selling a quality product is not enough. To stand out, businesses must tell compelling stories and build relationships...
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