Karen Leick
@kleick.bsky.social
Chicago. Modernism, Professional Writing, Gertrude Stein, middle-brow writers, periodical studies, DH. Always happy to see your pets. she/her
Reposted by Karen Leick
DC Public Library with a friendly reminder 📚
December 6, 2025 at 12:13 PM
DC Public Library with a friendly reminder 📚
Reposted by Karen Leick
A new report on dietary findings in a select area of Pompeii likely inhabited by enslaved people came out in Scavi di Pompei. Many newspapers are now running w/a headline about Roman slaves “eating better” than free Romans. pompeiisites.org/e-journal-de... Let’s discuss why this is problematic
December 6, 2025 at 12:48 PM
A new report on dietary findings in a select area of Pompeii likely inhabited by enslaved people came out in Scavi di Pompei. Many newspapers are now running w/a headline about Roman slaves “eating better” than free Romans. pompeiisites.org/e-journal-de... Let’s discuss why this is problematic
Reposted by Karen Leick
“I became both heroine and heroin to him. And sometimes, a heron, for when we did bird play.”
More Excerpts from Olivia Nuzzi’s American Canto
“Forget the sex; the real scandal here is the crime against language.” — Brian Phillips, The Ringer, on Olivia Nuzzi’s new memoir, American Canto, ...
buff.ly
December 4, 2025 at 2:04 PM
“I became both heroine and heroin to him. And sometimes, a heron, for when we did bird play.”
Reposted by Karen Leick
Some rare good news: Journalists at the PEN Guild won their arbitration case against Politico, which deployed two separate faulty AI products (a "report builder" and a headline and summary generator on the homepage) without their knowledge or input.
That violated their contract, the arbiter found.
That violated their contract, the arbiter found.
Journalists win a key battle over AI in the newsroom
PLUS: Artists fight for an AI transparency law in the belly of the beast, a Spotify mass deletion event, and an interview with a top video games journalist about AI and labor.
www.bloodinthemachine.com
December 4, 2025 at 7:19 PM
Some rare good news: Journalists at the PEN Guild won their arbitration case against Politico, which deployed two separate faulty AI products (a "report builder" and a headline and summary generator on the homepage) without their knowledge or input.
That violated their contract, the arbiter found.
That violated their contract, the arbiter found.
Reposted by Karen Leick
does anyone else notice the giant lady doesnt cut up your hot dogs anymore!?
Because you're an adult you fucking muppet. You gotta pay the magic forward.
December 4, 2025 at 12:26 AM
does anyone else notice the giant lady doesnt cut up your hot dogs anymore!?
Reposted by Karen Leick
Way to stand up to... *checks notes* 61-year-old recreational players. Good work, USTA. 🙃
December 4, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Way to stand up to... *checks notes* 61-year-old recreational players. Good work, USTA. 🙃
Reposted by Karen Leick
If you're buying gifts for spirited 12 year olds who have read most of the middle grade graphic novel canon, can I recommend my book The Legend of Auntie Po? It's multi-awarded, and well reviewed, but hasn't entirely found its commercial footing.
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/601780...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/601780...
The Legend of Auntie Po by Shing Yin Khor: 9780525554882 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
A NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST Part historical fiction, part fable, and 100 percent adventure. Thirteen-year-old Mei reimagines the myths of Paul Bunyan as starring a Chinese heroine while she works ...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com
December 3, 2025 at 5:33 PM
If you're buying gifts for spirited 12 year olds who have read most of the middle grade graphic novel canon, can I recommend my book The Legend of Auntie Po? It's multi-awarded, and well reviewed, but hasn't entirely found its commercial footing.
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/601780...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/601780...
Reposted by Karen Leick
Bookish Holiday Fun and Games For... YOU!
Now in its sixth year, for this #NewberryLibrary Advent Calendar, we'll play around with the collection! Cards, Board Games, Puzzles, Gambling...
What's up first?
CHESS!
December 1 (1/24)
Here's last year's extra-shiny offering:
bsky.app/profile/drka...
Now in its sixth year, for this #NewberryLibrary Advent Calendar, we'll play around with the collection! Cards, Board Games, Puzzles, Gambling...
What's up first?
CHESS!
December 1 (1/24)
Here's last year's extra-shiny offering:
bsky.app/profile/drka...
December 1, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Bookish Holiday Fun and Games For... YOU!
Now in its sixth year, for this #NewberryLibrary Advent Calendar, we'll play around with the collection! Cards, Board Games, Puzzles, Gambling...
What's up first?
CHESS!
December 1 (1/24)
Here's last year's extra-shiny offering:
bsky.app/profile/drka...
Now in its sixth year, for this #NewberryLibrary Advent Calendar, we'll play around with the collection! Cards, Board Games, Puzzles, Gambling...
What's up first?
CHESS!
December 1 (1/24)
Here's last year's extra-shiny offering:
bsky.app/profile/drka...
Reposted by Karen Leick
This is Mr. Paworotti. His favorite Christmas song is Howl-lelujah. If you'll excuse him, his solo is coming up. 13/10 (TT: therealpaworotti)
December 2, 2025 at 11:36 PM
This is Mr. Paworotti. His favorite Christmas song is Howl-lelujah. If you'll excuse him, his solo is coming up. 13/10 (TT: therealpaworotti)
Reposted by Karen Leick
my aunt got me this cute penzey's DEI themed advent spice calendar. we love an extremely woke brand don't we folks
November 25, 2025 at 4:40 PM
my aunt got me this cute penzey's DEI themed advent spice calendar. we love an extremely woke brand don't we folks
Reposted by Karen Leick
Reposted by Karen Leick
I wrote an essay for @bostonreview.bsky.social about what I learned about close reading when I taught at West Virginia University
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
The Claims of Close Reading - Boston Review
Literary studies have been starved by austerity, but their core methodology remains radical.
www.bostonreview.net
November 26, 2025 at 3:14 PM
I wrote an essay for @bostonreview.bsky.social about what I learned about close reading when I taught at West Virginia University
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
Reposted by Karen Leick
“The editor interviewed him in the 1960s for the job of political correspondent.
‘Are you interested in politics, Mr Stoppard?’
‘Indeed I am.’
‘So then can you tell me the name of the prime minister?’
‘I said I was interested, not that I was obsessed!’”
open.substack.com/pub/nickcohe...
‘Are you interested in politics, Mr Stoppard?’
‘Indeed I am.’
‘So then can you tell me the name of the prime minister?’
‘I said I was interested, not that I was obsessed!’”
open.substack.com/pub/nickcohe...
RIP Tom Stoppard: England’s great (Jewish) playwright
Tom Stoppard died today aged 88 – which, as a lover of cricket, he would be the first to say was a decent innings.
open.substack.com
November 29, 2025 at 8:46 PM
“The editor interviewed him in the 1960s for the job of political correspondent.
‘Are you interested in politics, Mr Stoppard?’
‘Indeed I am.’
‘So then can you tell me the name of the prime minister?’
‘I said I was interested, not that I was obsessed!’”
open.substack.com/pub/nickcohe...
‘Are you interested in politics, Mr Stoppard?’
‘Indeed I am.’
‘So then can you tell me the name of the prime minister?’
‘I said I was interested, not that I was obsessed!’”
open.substack.com/pub/nickcohe...
Reposted by Karen Leick
Guilt free! For every Onion shirt you purchase, 100% will be donated to the charity “Onion, Inc.” https://store.theonion.com/collections/mens-apparel-accessories
November 29, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Guilt free! For every Onion shirt you purchase, 100% will be donated to the charity “Onion, Inc.” https://store.theonion.com/collections/mens-apparel-accessories
Reposted by Karen Leick
Don't worry, if you go to Northwestern, you can "choose to identify" as trans, you just can't live or use the bathroom there
"The agreement places no restrictions on our transgender community."
Except whether they can play sports, where they can use the bathroom or locker room, what kind of housing they can live in, and what healthcare they can receive.
Except whether they can play sports, where they can use the bathroom or locker room, what kind of housing they can live in, and what healthcare they can receive.
November 29, 2025 at 7:43 AM
Don't worry, if you go to Northwestern, you can "choose to identify" as trans, you just can't live or use the bathroom there
Reposted by Karen Leick
I didn’t want to overreact, and took time to read this. Having done so, I’m adding Northwestern to the list of places I won’t visit or speak. The concessions re: international students and gender-affirming care are not merely symbolic.
Here’s the text of the Northwestern settlement with the DoJ, which includes a $75 million financial component / payoff (cc @profmarkovic.bsky.social):
November 29, 2025 at 5:10 AM
I didn’t want to overreact, and took time to read this. Having done so, I’m adding Northwestern to the list of places I won’t visit or speak. The concessions re: international students and gender-affirming care are not merely symbolic.
Reposted by Karen Leick
Obligatory Black Friday Post
Analog calendars are really hot right now.
Analog calendars are really hot right now.
Blue Heron Farm 2026
Spend an entire year with the goofballs at Blue Heron Farm. Sure, it's mostly goats, but you should see what they get up to.
www.lulu.com
November 28, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Obligatory Black Friday Post
Analog calendars are really hot right now.
Analog calendars are really hot right now.
Reposted by Karen Leick
A pair of new studies published on Thursday show that the road to cat domestication was far more complex than scientists first suspected.
The Incredible, Unlikely Story of How Cats Became Our Pets
Two new studies dig into the long, curving path that cats took toward domestication
www.scientificamerican.com
November 28, 2025 at 1:29 PM
A pair of new studies published on Thursday show that the road to cat domestication was far more complex than scientists first suspected.
Reposted by Karen Leick
A Chicago woman was sworn in as a United States citizen. She wanted her husband there, but he was taken by ICE. A story about the government tearing a couple apart even though they’re trying to do things the so-called “right way.” By @tesskenny.bsky.social www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/28/i...
As the immigration blitz wound down, an Uptown couple breathed a sigh of relief. Then they were torn apart.
Less than a day before Eva Gurtovaia was to become a U.S. citizen, federal agents detained her Kurdish husband, who was authorized to work in the country.
www.chicagotribune.com
November 28, 2025 at 1:30 PM
A Chicago woman was sworn in as a United States citizen. She wanted her husband there, but he was taken by ICE. A story about the government tearing a couple apart even though they’re trying to do things the so-called “right way.” By @tesskenny.bsky.social www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/28/i...
Reposted by Karen Leick
And if you're a Criterion Channel subscriber/fan, check out this feed to see what other Bluesky friends are watching
November 26, 2025 at 5:10 PM
And if you're a Criterion Channel subscriber/fan, check out this feed to see what other Bluesky friends are watching
Reposted by Karen Leick
one of the coolest things about ChatGPT is how you can actually just never use it. you can fill your whole entire life with simply not once using it. it's incredible.
November 25, 2025 at 4:15 PM
one of the coolest things about ChatGPT is how you can actually just never use it. you can fill your whole entire life with simply not once using it. it's incredible.
Reposted by Karen Leick
I wrote about the fake account blowup on X this weekend. A genuine post-truth nightmare and proof that these companies have polluted their platforms so thoroughly and traded reality for profit that they've undermined the very idea of what the internet is supposed to be.
That MAGA Account Might Be a Troll From Pakistan
How X blew up its own platform with a new location feature
www.theatlantic.com
November 24, 2025 at 4:33 PM
I wrote about the fake account blowup on X this weekend. A genuine post-truth nightmare and proof that these companies have polluted their platforms so thoroughly and traded reality for profit that they've undermined the very idea of what the internet is supposed to be.
Reposted by Karen Leick
Today, after months of requests, I toured the Broadview ICE Processing Facility. I want to share what I saw.
The facility has no food vendor, no medical care, and detainees have to use toilets in the middle of shared cells. These are in no way suitable conditions to be holding anyone — period.
The facility has no food vendor, no medical care, and detainees have to use toilets in the middle of shared cells. These are in no way suitable conditions to be holding anyone — period.
November 25, 2025 at 12:57 AM
Today, after months of requests, I toured the Broadview ICE Processing Facility. I want to share what I saw.
The facility has no food vendor, no medical care, and detainees have to use toilets in the middle of shared cells. These are in no way suitable conditions to be holding anyone — period.
The facility has no food vendor, no medical care, and detainees have to use toilets in the middle of shared cells. These are in no way suitable conditions to be holding anyone — period.
Reposted by Karen Leick
“U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood on Monday called conditions inside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview “terrible” and warned that staffing is expected to triple by January at ICE facilities in the Chicago area in anticipation of more immigration enforcement.”
U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood tours Broadview ICE facility and warns deportation blitz isn't over
The Democratic congresswoman said staffing for Chicago area ICE facilities is expected to triple in coming months.
chicago.suntimes.com
November 24, 2025 at 10:50 PM
“U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood on Monday called conditions inside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview “terrible” and warned that staffing is expected to triple by January at ICE facilities in the Chicago area in anticipation of more immigration enforcement.”
Reposted by Karen Leick
And Carville had the audacity to invoke Mamdani's win to make his point? Mamdani didn't go "anti-woke" to win. Quite the opposite! www.readtpa.com/p/a-politici...
A Politician Actually Defended Trans People. It Shouldn't Be This Rare.
Many Democrats are treating trans people as politically toxic. NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani released a two-minute video proving there's another way.
www.readtpa.com
November 24, 2025 at 8:43 PM
And Carville had the audacity to invoke Mamdani's win to make his point? Mamdani didn't go "anti-woke" to win. Quite the opposite! www.readtpa.com/p/a-politici...