Shelly Reuben 's Recent Stories


A tough racket …

July 28, 1973 My dear Shelly, Why don’t you give up on New York City and come back to Chicago and Highland ..


He loved not wisely, but too well

To be a landlord is to be imprisoned in the last form of sanctioned slavery in this country. It is ..


For Sale By Owner

I grew up during the bad years. Urban Renewal had come within block of my father’s buildings. New government-subsidized ..


Changing neighborhoods

In the early 1900’s, my grandfather, Shepsel Reuben, opened a little general store at 656 Maxwell Street in Chicago. Maxwell ..


Coming to America

Samuel Reuben loved Chicago. When my mother made him leave the gray stucco house at 4907 North Bernard Street, where ..


My Darling Daughter…

When my father wrote me these letters, I was living in Princeton, New Jersey, commuting to my job in Manhattan, ..


Iconoclasm…here we come

Question: What, exactly, was my father? Answer: He was the personification of his favorite word, which he both used and ..


Who knew what "covet" meant anyway?

One thing I always liked most about having been brought up in a conservative Jewish home, was that the religious ..


And bring all of your manuscripts with you

It was infinitely possible for me to leave home and become an adventuress, because I was so secure in the ..


I am standing behind you to prevent starvation!

AUTHOR NOTE: I don’t know how I happened to get a hold of this next letter, but I’m grateful that ..


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The Soundtrack Of My Childhood
The soundtrack of my childhood

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The Happy Store: The Tiara and the Nativity, part 1