Chicago Author and Architect Thomas Leslie to Receive Pattis Family Foundation Chicago Book Award on September 14

Leslie to be honored for his book, Chicago Skyscrapers 1934-1986: How Technology, Politics, Finance, & Race Reshaped the City

CHICAGO, Sept. 5, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The Newberry Library and The Pattis Family Foundation will present the third annual $25,000 Pattis Family Foundation Chicago Book Award during an event at the library on September 14. Thomas Leslie, author of Chicago Skyscrapers 1934-1986: How Technology, Politics, Finance, & Race Reshaped the City, will receive the award, which celebrates works that transform public understanding of Chicago, its history, and its people.

“Thomas Leslie’s book is a wonderful example of a work that helps readers better understand Chicago,” said Astrida Orle Tantillo, President and Librarian of the Newberry. “At first glance it is a book about architecture—a topic of great interest to many Chicagoans. Chicago Skyscrapers is much more than that, however. It tells a compelling story about the politics, technology, and personalities behind the construction of some of Chicago’s most iconic buildings and helps us better appreciate the history of how our city grew.”

In addition to awarding Thomas Leslie, the juried panel also recognizes John William Nelson as the shortlist award recipient for authoring Muddy Ground: Native Peoples, Chicago’s Portage, and the Transformation of the Continent. Nelson will receive an award of $2,500.

The presentation of the 2024 Pattis Family Foundation Chicago Book Award takes place at a free, public event at the Newberry Library on Saturday, September 14. Both recipients will be recognized, and Thomas Leslie will discuss his work with newly appointed Chicago Tribune architecture columnist Ed Keegan. Emceed by journalist Rick Kogan, the event also serves as a celebration of the power of storytelling, featuring a lineup of speakers sharing their Chicago stories, a performance by the Joel Hall Dancers, and a presentation of items from the Newberry’s collections. Visitors will also have the chance to view two Newberrry exhibitions—Indigenous Chicago and Chicago Style: Mike Royko and Windy City Journalism. The program gets under way at 1:30pm with the award presentation taking place at 3pm.

The Pattis Family Foundation Chicago Book Award is open to writers working in a variety of genres, including history, biography, social sciences, poetry, drama, graphic novels, and fiction—all relating to Chicago. Toya Wolfe received the 2023 Pattis Award for Last Summer on State Street, and Dawn Turner received the inaugural award in 2022 for Three Girls from Bronzeville.

“I’m incredibly honored and grateful to have Chicago Skyscrapers 1934-1986 receive The Pattis Family Foundation Chicago Book Award,” Leslie said. “The books that have received this award previously have helped me understand our city better, in all of its richness and complexity. I’ve always thought that architecture is one of the ways that people and cities tell their stories. I’m thrilled to have the book recognized for bringing these to light.”

Leslie spent seven years as an architect with Norman Foster and Partners in London. He is now a professor of architecture at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Leslie is the author of Louis I. Kahn: Building Art, Building Science; Chicago Skyscrapers, 1871-1934; and Beauty’s Rigor: Patterns of Production in the Work of Pier Luigi Nervi.

Mark Pattis of The Pattis Family Foundation commented: “With the selection of Chicago Skyscrapers 1934-1986 as this year’s award recipient, the Newberry Library continues the tradition of selecting a book that broadens the understanding of our city, its history, and its people. Our congratulations to Mr. Leslie and the other authors recognized by the selection committee. We are delighted to see so many different works about Chicago recognized and are grateful to the Newberry and the members of the selection committee for their dedication to the selection process.”

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SOURCE Newberry Library