In 1914 he published one of his most well-known poetry collections, Chicago Poems, which proved to be quite a success. With that rise in recognition Sandburg began releasing poems at regular intervals, producing books such as: Cornhuskers, Smoke and Iron, Slabs of the Sunburnt West, and The People, Yes (Carl Sandburg: Author Biography).
Other than poetry, though, Sandburg was able to establish himself as Journalist for publications like the Chicago Daily News, writing about things such as civil rights, crime, business, politics, and both world wars. After releasing this and hundreds of poems, he moved to other types of literature. His fascination with the former president Abraham Lincoln was reflected in the massive biography he wrote, told in the two volumous sections of Abraham Lincoln: the Prairie Years, and Abraham Lincoln: the War Years. In 1920 he revealed his abilities as a speaker of philosophies and singer of Folk Songs, which he condensed into a book titled The American Songbook in 1927. Sandburg also published some children's book including Rootabaga Stories and Potato Face, and finished off by writing two novels. His first, Remembrance Rock, was a look at the American Society from the arrival of the pilgrims to the time he wrote it. Later he wrote an autobiography of his earlier years, Always the Young Strangers (Carl Sandburg: Author Biography). .
One of the poems that Sandburg is most known was from Chicago Poems, aptly named "Chicago". This poem is not long, totaling just twenty-three lines, but it sums up much of what Sandburg believed in, most of all the celebration of the common American people, especially the urban laboring class. The poetry that Sandburg wrote addresses these common people in many ways. "Chicago" was written in free verse, using plain language free from obscure mythological and religious references that allowed readers to understand the meaning without extensive knowledge and research (Chicago Essay Review).
