In 1989, a local, community-based bookstore, Guild Books (once located on Lincoln Avenue) began regularly hosting progressive, stimulating, and eclectic literary events. Soon after, the Guild Complex established itself as an official non-profit organization with poet Michael Warr as its first executive director.

For the last 30 years, the Guild Literary Complex has been a pioneer on Chicago’s literary landscape, consistently hosting innovative and diverse events, featuring leading literary names, and welcoming new, emerging voices.

Actively working with individuals and organizations from all of Chicago’s many neighborhoods, the Guild seeks to connect seemingly disparate groups and geographies through literature—bringing unexpected writers, programs, and audiences together.

Accolades

The Guild Literary Complex was nominated for the Chicago Reader’s Best Poetry Organization of 2021, and Guild board members and leaders continue to appear in Newcity’s annual Lit 50.

The Guild has been acknowledged as “Chicago’s premier literary center” by the Illinois Arts Council and twice selected as a model literary center by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Famous Faces

Chicago writer Studs Terkel, activist Meridel Le Sueur, and blues legend Willie Dixon are among many famous faces who have passed through the doors of Guild Books, and past writers have included some of history’s most influential contemporary authors, including:

Gwendolyn Brooks
Ana Castillo
Lucille Clifton
Kent Foreman
Eduardo Galeano
Jack Hirschman
Ricardo Gamboa
Angela Jackson
Alex Kotlowitz
Li-Young Lee
Sharon Olds
Michael Ondaatje
Grace Paley
Octavio Paz
Sterling Plumpp
Adrienne Rich
Carolyn Rodgers
Luis Rodriguez
Salman Rushdie
Patricia Smith
Quincy Troupe