Rachel Leon

United States

Managing Director at Chicago Review of Books

Writer and Editor at Freelance

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Articles

"As a writer, your job is to pay attention": An Interview with Karen Bender

1 week ago | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

Some authors get deemed “writers’ writers,” meaning their work is so skillful, sharp, and brilliant, we writers flock to it. Lydia Davis, James McBride, Joy Williams, Clarice Lipspector, Lorrie Moore, Susan Choi, Denis Johnson, Jesmyn Ward—these are a few writers whose work other writers often revisit to study, for inspiration, and to marvel. I’d put National Book Award-finalist Karen E. Bender in this same category.
“Make them stop you”: An Interview with Sarah Schulman about “The Fantasy and Necessity of Solidarity”

3 weeks ago | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

Our country is especially divided today. Some of those issues have long been divisive, like abortion, climate change, and immigration. Others have grown on people’s radar these days—the destruction of Social Security, the need to stop genocide in Palestine, and how much control an unelected billionaire should have in our government. Many of us are asking ourselves how we can fix this mess, how to come together to fight for the respect, dignity, and justice of all people.
Read Your Resistance: "Like a Hammer: Poets on Mass Incarceration"

2 months ago | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

Yesterday I spent 50 cents to communicate with someone who is incarcerated. It was a cheap day. He gets one free video visit a week and, this week, he used it on me. I know his family is supporting him, putting money on his books, so I feel guilty each time I’m the one he uses his free visit on. But his family is typically working during the free video visit windows (Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 8am-4pm), and anyway, we’re friends now, he reminds me. I didn’t know him until three months ago.
Sifting Truth From Fiction: An Interview with Nicole Graev Lipson

2 months ago | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

Those of us who are big readers fall in love with books either because of how they’re written or what they’re saying—I loved Nicole Graev Lipson’s debut memoir in essays, Mothers and Other Fictional Characters, for both. Let’s start with how it’s written. Oh, the writing! Graev Lipson’s prose isn’t only gorgeous, it’s skillful—dare I say masterful. Each sentence sculpted with grace, each paragraph constructed with careful planning.
5 Books by Trans Writers to Pre-order

2 months ago | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

It’s terrifying and disheartening to watch how aggressive the current administration’s attacks have been on trans lives. How many hospitals, even in blue states, even here in Chicago, have stopped gender (and life) affirming treatments to trans youth. Let’s show some love to trans writers, CHIRB style! Here are 5 books by trans writers that are available to pre-order from your local indie bookstore or from our Bookshop.
Redefining Memoir: A Conversation with Jackie Domenus

2 months ago | therumpus.net | Rachel Leon

Jackie Domenus caught my attention when I read an early draft of their essay, “Of Dogs and Men,” in a writers’ workshop. I’ve been waiting for the chance to read more of their work, and the wait is finally over: their debut, No Offense (ELJ Editions, 2025), includes the essay that made me first fall in love with their writing.
Introducing "Read Your Resistance"

Feb 13, 2025 | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

I’ve been more tuned into the news lately than is healthy, I’m sure. Each day I hold my breath as I learn what fresh new hell awaits this country. Many have written about how we’re living in unprecedented times. While our country is rooted in white supremacy, what’s happening now is so blatant: a government sanctioned crusade against diversity, equity, and inclusion. Meanwhile the richest man in the world has assembled a team of young people to go into government buildings and take sensitive data.
Interview with an Editor: Deborah Shapiro of B-Side Editions

Jan 13, 2025 | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

B-Side Editions is a new micro-press that as of now has two titles: Deborah Shapiro’s third novel, Consolation, and Donato Loia’s 1095 Short Sentences, which was released last year. Shapiro’s first two novels were traditionally published (The Sun in Your Eyeswith William Morrow & Company, and The Summer Demandswith Catapult). When she and her agent didn’t find a home for Consolation, Shapiro launched B-Side Editions in order to get the novel into the world.
Lit & Luz Festival Showcases Bilingual Artists from Chicago and Mexico

Oct 28, 2024 | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

We here at the Chicago Review of Books might be biased, but we believe Chicago’s literary scene is the best in the country. Not only is our city full of talented writers, there’s always something literary to do here. The city proper boasts more than 25 independent bookstores, ample live lit events, literary institutions like the American Writers Museum and the Newberry Library, and, of course, StoryStudio Chicago. With so many rich literary offerings, it can be hard to keep up.
How a Head Injury Can Examine Character Motivation: An Interview with Esinam Bediako about "Blood on the Brain"

Sep 27, 2024 | chireviewofbooks.com | Rachel Leon

Readers often talk about liking a novel (or not) because they connected to the protagonist (or didn’t). Reasons, sometimes inexplicable, for connecting—or not—vary from one reader to the next. That said, I immediately loved and connected with twenty-four-year-old Ghanaian American Akosua, the protagonist and narrator of Esinam Bediako’s thrilling debut novel, Blood on the Brain. Akosua’s status as a grad student is a bit hazy, as is her love life.