Founded in Chicago in 2021 by queer educator, freelance writer, and runner Allison Yates, the mission of Read & Run Tours, LLC and the city chapters is to use movement and stories to explore locations. It's the first and only running events organization with routes built by stories. Read & Run Chicago is the flagship chapter of Read & Run Tours. I've been guiding tours with them since 2022; the books that I've worked with so far are below.
This is a tour of downtown Chicago based on pre-Stonewall Chicago history and the lesbian pulp novel The Girls in 3-B, created in partnership with Gerber/Hart Library & Archives.
I wrote an original route based on archival research of the city and the life of author Valerie Taylor. I first guided this tour in 2022 and have repeated it annually with larger audiences every time. Starting in 2023, attendees get to take home a self-guided zine version of the tour that I wrote.
I presented on my work researching and writing this tour during a poster session at the Illinois Library Association annual conference in October 2023. After that event, I was invited to present on the topic during the ILA Noon Network webinar series in February 2024. I love sharing more about this topic, especially getting the chance to talk about lesbian pulp novels and pre-Stonewall Chicago. To this aim, I wrote a blog for Read & Run Chicago on more resources about this era of queer history.
This running tour took us through Lakeview, Chicago. It was based on 1980s queer history and the novel The Great Believers, created in partnership with Gerber/Hart Library & Archives.
I co-guided this tour alongside a fantastic Read & Run team and several guest speakers who are experts on queer Chicago history. Every participant got to take home a zine of the route that I wrote for the event. I also hosted the Q&A with author Rebecca Makkai after the run. It was truly a one-of-a-kind event that I feel lucky to have been a part of.