Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore is the perfect place to look for that special history volume, biography, or mystery you need for stimulation, inspiration, information, escape &/or laughter.

The atmosphere is warm and friendly with oak bookcases labeled with the historical era or subject matter of the books on the shelves. There are two windsor chairs, a rocking chair, and a church pew to sit on while reviewing books prior to your purchases, all set on a portion of Bruce plaid carpet framed with forest green carpeting.

Not only that, but C&S also has discussion groups in history & mystery where you can share your opinion about a given book & possibly argue in defense of your view on a given author, book, or topic.

Our next stellar performance will be MEETING OF MINDS XV: JOAN OF ARC: HER ENEMIES & HER FRIENDS! There will probably be 2 performances held November, 1 & 2, 2008. There may be 4 performances depending on the demand. For more details look in the Calendar of Events for those 2 dates.

Also, there is a good chance that you can discuss your opinion about a book with the author who caused your joy, thoughtfulness, queries, & maybe anger. That is because C&S has frequent signings for authors of histories, biographies, & mysteries, for both adults & children. In some cases, we have visits from the famous (e.g. Napoleon, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Luther, Twain, Elizabeth I, Joan of Arc, Isabella of Castile, F.D.R., etc.) who have "passed on" who you can argue with when they appear. They are portrayed by members of C&S's History Discussion Group in our Meeting of Minds series. Finally, it's the bookstore that makes the tomes you read come alive.

The latest item we are carrying is a bust of Sherlock Holmes (5-5/8"H, 3-1/2"W, 2-3/4"D) exclusively commissioned by Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore and designed by local artist, Glenn Braun to Augie Aleksy's specifications (November 27, 2004). They are for sale in plaster @ $29.99/ea and resin @ $49.99/ea plus shipping/handling & insurance USPO.

Centuries & Sleuths was listed as one of the Ten Best Bookstores in Chicago in the Tempo section of the Chicago Tribune on June 8, 2007 by Patrick Reardon (Remember, fame is fleeting.)

We've got some great events coming up, 2/26 at 7PM we have mystery author, Nancy Atherton for her 14th mystery Aunt Dimity: Vampire Hunter ; 3/2 at 2PM Christa Faust (1st Female Author of the "Hardcase" Crime Series with her pulp mystery Money Shot {Take a look at the Book Cover}; 3/9 @ 2PM Ellen F. Steinberg & Eleanor Hanson will discuss & sign their historic cookbook Learning to Cook in 1898: A Chicago Culinary Memoir along with Carol Mighton Haddix who has edited Chicago Cooks: 25 Years of Food History...; 3/11 @ 7PM Beverle Graves Myers will discuss & sign her 4th Titi Amato Historical Mystery set in 18th Century Venice The Iron Tongue of Midnight 3/13 @ 7:PM Somthing New: Page to Screen. Its a new book club you read a book that's been made into a movie. Then view movie and discuss the transition... good, bad, ridiculous? You decide.LOOK AT "STORE EVENTS" FOR MORE..

Title of Event: On This Day...
When: Thursday, August 7, 2008 11:00 PM
Description: 1790: Chief McGillivray signed a Peace Treaty at Federal Hall in New York City.

1852: Birthday of Dr. John Hamish Watson, M.D., loyal friend & life long companion to Sherlock Holmes.

1964: U.S. Congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which gave President Lyndon Baines Johnson the power to wage war in Indochina.
(Read More!)

Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys, and the Battle for America's Soul by Abbott, Karen Step into the perfumed parlors of the Everleigh Club, the most famous brothel in American history-and the catalyst for a culture war that rocked the nation. Operating in Chicago's notorious Levee district at the dawn of the last century, the Club's proprietors, two aristocratic sisters named Minna and Ada Everleigh, welcomed moguls and actors, senators and athletes, foreign dignitaries and literary icons, into their stately double mansion, where thirty stunning Everleigh "butterflies" awaited their arrival. Courtesans named Doll, Suzy Poon Tang, and Brick Top devoured raw meat to the delight of Prince Henry of Prussia and recited poetry for Theodore Dreiser. Whereas lesser madams pocketed most of a harlot's earnings and kept a "whipper" on staff to mete out discipline, the Everleighs made sure their girls dined on gourmet food, were examined by an honest physician, and even tutored in the literature of Balzac. Not everyone appreciated the sisters' attempts to elevate the industry. Rival Levee madams hatched numerous schemes to ruin the Everleighs, including an attempt to frame them for the death of department store heir Marshall Field, Jr. But the sisters' most daunting foes were the Progressive Era reformers, who sent the entire country into a frenzy with lurid tales of "white slavery"----the allegedly rampant practice of kidnapping young girls and forcing them into brothels. This furor shaped America's sexual culture and had repercussions all the way to the White House, including the formation of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. With a cast of characters that includes Jack Johnson, John Barrymore, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., William Howard Taft, "Hinky Dink" Kenna, and AlCapone, Sin in the Second City is Karen Abbott's colorful, nuanced portrait of the iconic Everleigh sisters, their world-famous Club, and the perennial clash between our nation's hedonistic impulses and Puritanical roots. Culminating in a dramatic last stand between brothel keepers and crusading reformers, "Sin in the Second City" offers a vivid snapshot of America's journey from Victorian-era propriety to twentieth-century modernity. Visit www.sininthesecondcity.com to learn more Praise for "Sin in the Second City: ""Assiduously researched... "Sin in the Second City"] describes a popular culture awash in wild tales of sexual abuse, crusading reformers claiming God on their side, and deep suspicion of the threat posed by "foreigners" to the nation's Christian values." ----Janet Maslin, "The New York Times " "Lavish in her details, nicely detached in her point of view, and with] scrupulous concern for historical accuracy, Ms. Abbott has written an immensely readable book. "Sin in the Second City" offers much in the way of reflection for those interested in the unending puzzle that goes by the name of human nature." -- "The Wall Street Journal " " ""Abbott's first book is meticulously researched and entertaining... a colorful history of old Chicago that reads like a novel." ----The Atlanta Journal Constitution "With gleaming prose and authoritative knowledge Abbott elucidates one of the most colorful periods in American history, and the result reads like the very best fiction. Sex, opulence, murder -- What's not to love?" ---- Sara Gruen, author of "Water for Elephants " "A detailed and intimate portrait of the Ritz of brothels, the famedEverleigh Club of turn-of-the-century Chicago. Sisters Minna and Ada attracted the elites of the world to such glamorous chambers as the Room of 1,000 Mirrors, complete with a reflective floor. And isn't Minna's advice to her resident prostitutes worthy advice for us all: "Give, but give interestingly and with mystery."' ---- Erik Larson, author of "The Devil in the White City " " ""Karen Abbott has combined bodice-ripping salaciousness with top-notch scholarship to produce a work more vivid than a Hollywood movie." ---- Melissa Fay Greene, author of "There is No Me Without You """Sin in the Second Cit"y is a masterful history lesson, a harrowing biography, and - best of all - a superfun read. The Everleigh story closely follows the turns of American history like a little sister. I can't recommend this book loudly enough." ---- Darin Strauss, author of "Chang and Eng" "This is a story of debauchery and corruption, but it is also a story of sisterhood, and unerring devotion. Meticulously researched, and beautifully crafted, "Sin in the Second City" is an utterly captivating piece of history." ---- Julian Rubinstein, author of "Ballad of the Whiskey Robber"

Big City, Bad Blood by Chercover, Sean A disillusioned newspaper reporter turned private detective, Ray Dudgeon isn't trying to save the world. He just wants to do an honest job, and do it well. But when doing an honest job threatens society's most powerful and corrupt, Ray's odds for survival make for a sucker's bet. . . . While working on a movie in Chicago, Hollywood locations manager Bob Loniski saw something he shouldn't have. Now he's a prosecution witness against a suspected member of the Chicago Outfit. Petrified, he comes to Ray for protection. Ray's mob contacts insist that they have no interest in Loniski, so he takes the bodyguard gig. Then people start dying and everything goes to hell. Ray's investigation leads to a stash of blackmail files involving the sex trade, Washington political corruption, and a deadly power struggle among Chicago's organized crime bosses--setting the FBI, the Chicago police, and the mob on his tail. He now holds evidence against top-ranking cops and politicians . . . but with the line between good and bad blurring, he doesn't know who he can trust. If he does the right thing, Ray is sure to die. But if he doesn't, how can he live with himself? From the back alleys of Chicago to the man-sions of Beverly Hills to the corridors of power in Washington, D.C., Sean Chercover's "Big City, Bad Blood" propels readers relentlessly forward on a bullet-fast, adrenaline-pumping ride they will not soon forget.