An American Summer

Love and Death in Chicago

By: Alex Kotlowitz

Narrated by: Alex Kotlowitz

2020 J. ANTHONY LUKAS PRIZE WINNER

From the bestselling author of There Are No Children Here, a richly textured, heartrending portrait of love and death in Chicago's most turbulent neighborhoods.

The numbers are staggering: over the past twenty years in Chicago, 14,033 people have been killed and another roughly 60,000 wounded by gunfire. What does that do to the spirit of individuals and community? Drawing on his decades of experience, Alex Kotlowitz set out to chronicle one summer in the city, writing about individuals who have emerged from the violence and whose stories capture the capacity--and the breaking point--of the human heart and soul. The result is a spellbinding collection of deeply intimate profiles that upend what we think we know about gun violence in America. Among others, we meet a man who as a teenager killed a rival gang member and twenty years later is still trying to come to terms with what he's done; a devoted school social worker struggling with her favorite student, who refuses to give evidence in the shooting death of his best friend; the witness to a wrongful police shooting who can't shake what he has seen; and an aging former gang leader who builds a place of refuge for himself and his friends.
Applying the close-up, empathic reporting that made There Are No Children Here a modern classic, Kotlowitz offers a piercingly honest portrait of a city in turmoil. These sketches of those left standing will get into your bones. This one summer will stay with you.

Exceptional....

As a parent who lost her only child to gun violence this book captured so much truth in feeling. Definitely a must read

In Depth Account of Violence in Chicago

Author chronicles different families and individuals lives affected by violence. Eye opening and personal. Gives reader insight into complex issues of the problems chicago faces

Terrific book

Alex Kotlowitz might be our most important writer in Chicago issues. Highly recommended. (he's also a very good reader)

Important Piece of Literature that Everyone Needs

Far too common as people disconnected to the stories we hear on the news, it is easy to cast quick judgements on situations we can't relate to and have never experienced. Kotlowitz does an amazing job at humanizing a group of people who are often too quickly stereotyped. He doesn't make excuses for their actions, but he brilliantly explains the complexity of emotions and influences that many are facing, far too often as a child. It's so easy to say what superficial actions need to be taken to "fix" the problem, but this book gives light to necessary rudimentary changes that must take place first.

From a Chicagoan

My heart is broken by the stories in this incredible book. It will haunt me.