Since it opened in 2004, Millennium Park has become an essential destination for visitors to and residents of Chicago, second only to Navy Pier. As with many of Chicago’s architectural and artistic marvels, how the park came to be is a story of outsize ambition, luck, political maneuvering, and turning obstacles into opportunities. Cheryl Kent’s lavishly illustrated book is the best general introduction to the park’s history and each of its attractions.
Published to commemorate the Deering Library’s 75th anniversary, this book explores the Deering and McCormick families, who funded the project; the building’s distinctive Collegiate Gothic architecture; its lore as a campus institution; and its role in the evolution of Northwestern University Library into one of the country’s most prominent research libraries. Richly illustrated, it is both an authoritative account of a landmark library and a rich keepsake for Northwestern alumni.
