For the Love of Mike: More of the Best of Mike Royko (Paperback)

~ (Author), Roger Ebert (Foreword) "Many people were shocked by the recent news report of the two baseball players who swapped their wives, their children-even their dogs..." (more)
Key Phrases: handgun lovers, defrocked judge, stone crab legs, Rodney King, Chicago Tribune, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This is a substantial second collection (after One More Time) by the quintessential urban columnist as he witnessed the 1960s through the 1990s, preserving with a keen eye his obsessions, rages and lonely ethical crusades. Royko (author of Boss, an infamous critique of Chicago's late Mayor Richard Daley) embodies a journalistic archetype once synonymous with Chicago (cf. The Front Page), but now nearly extinct: chauvinistic and old-fashioned, yet fiercely imbued with a sense of time and place, and with courage enough, as Roger Ebert recalls in his warm foreword, to denounce the newspapers of Rupert Murdoch the new owner of Royko's own paper as "not fit to wrap fish in." While Royko's subjects range widely, his moral stance and his well-honed rhetorical feints are rock-solid. Humorous columns like those featuring Slats Grobnik, Everyman of Royko's hardscrabble, white-ethnic neighborhood territory, or his legendary 1980 piece on pigeon eaters in Grant Park feel like grittier versions of folksy writers like Garrison Keillor. His serious, angrier pieces edge closer than most postwar writers dared in addressing the nihilistic darkness enveloping the cities, as in "Nero Would Love Chicago," a 1975 piece acidly questioning police priorities during an arson epidemic. His pieces regarding the civil rights struggle where he examines Northern racial hypocrisy alongside Southern brutality remain sharp and poignant, and remind how groundless are charges of intolerance leveled against Royko late in life. Finally, his wry critiques of the Chicago "machine" and its time-honored traditions ("when you buy somebody, they stay bought") make one miss his gadfly presence on the political scene, particularly his unerring eye for hypocrisy. Fans will treasure this collection. (Apr.) Forecast: Need we even say this will be a bestseller in Chicago?

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Royko entertained and educated Chicago newspaper readers with his nationally syndicated daily columns for more than 30 years. After his death in 1997, One More Time, a collection of his best columns, was published. The result of reader requests, this second volume brings together more than 100 additional selections chosen from over 7000 pieces. The collection is organized around some of Royko's favorite themes, ranging from the affliction of being a Cubs fan to his passionate concern for civil rights. His columns cover all types of issues, from the distress of short-legged male dogs in a Chicago winter to the need for stricter handgun regulations. Also included are letters, calls, complaints, and thoughts from readers, as well as a foreword by Roger Ebert. Old friends of Slat Grobnick, Royko's a beloved Chicago character, will welcome this highly readable collection, and new readers will want to know more. It is also of interest to journalism students. Judy Solberg, George Washington Univ. Lib., Washington, DC
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 292 pages
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press (May 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0226730743
• ISBN-13: 978-0226730745
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #203,011 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, but not the best Royko collection, April 13, 2006

By	K.A.Goldberg (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: For the Love of Mike: More of the Best of Mike Royko (Hardcover)

For those of us that enjoyed the daily newspaper column by Mike Royko (1932-1997) from 1963-1997, there were many favorites. This edition is a second collection of Royko columns published after he died (the first was ONE MORE TIME). Royko was witty, hard-hitting, self-deprecating, irreverent, serious, sympathetic and funny - often in the same column. He took on crooked politicians, stuffed shirts, and arrogance in high places, reserving soft spots for minorities, little people, stressed-out workers, drinkers, and anybody getting a raw deal. This collection of columns falls short of those in its predecessor, but there are still lots of laughs and serious writing here.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars More Great Articles from Mike Royko, May 24, 2001

By	C. W. Emblom "Bill Emblom" (Ishpeming, Michigan USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: For the Love of Mike: More of the Best of Mike Royko (Hardcover)

If you enjoyed reading Mike Royko's articles in newspapers or his previous book entitled "One More Time" you will enjoy this latest offering of more of his past articles. He covers a variety of subjects ranging from his beloved Chicago Cubs to politics and civil rights in his usual sarcastic manner. Neither book, however, has had my favorite article entitled "Real Fans Endure Phonies". The book is a good read and one I intend to keep for my library.

4.0 out of 5 stars Awesome., June 17, 2009

By	David S. Keich "book lover" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A nice collection of some of his best articles. Not that he had any bad ones that I know of but its not possible to publish them all. He wrote several columns a week for years. He had a very direct way of writing exactly what he felt or thought about something. You knew right away where he stood on any subject.