When Nora (Balayti) Reuter was working shifts as a bartender at Murphy’s Bleachers, the popular sports bar located just steps from the bleacher entrance of beautiful and historic Wrigley Field, little did she know that she was also doing prep work for a future book project.
Reuter, a 2006 graduate of NIU with a bachelor of arts degree from the School of Art and Design has used her well rounded arts training in a number of ways. Perhaps most notably, until now, as a mural artist whose works in and around the Chicago area, includes one in Malta, familiar to anyone traveling to NIU on route 38 from the west.
She says she still does some mural work, but is more focused on her new initiative. She has opened Brave Arts Creative Studio, a one of a kind venture that offers open studio hours with weekly rotations of projects and materials for kids, adult DIY paint parties, customizable private parties, art camps, private lessons and focused package offerings for neurodivergent kids.
Reuter began her studies at NIU focused on illustration, but says she took “just about every single art class they offered.”
“I learned so many techniques and had influential professors like Karen Brown, Lee Sido and Benjamin Stone.”
One thing she has always aspired to do is to illustrate a children’s book, and suddenly her aspirations and interests aligned perfectly.
Reuter has illustrated “My First Trip to the Bleachers: Big Feelings at the Cubs Game,” a children’s book written by Michael Cerami who writes and edits Bleacher Nation, a popular web site that covers the Cubs and other Chicago sports teams.
The book tells the story of a young Cubs’ fan’s first visit to Wrigley Field and its iconic outfield bleachers.
“Combining my passion for art with my love of the Cubs and my time there was the perfect project to break into the industry,” Reuter said. “I lived in Wrigleyville and worked at Murphy’s Bleachers for almost a decade. I have a few more books in the works and hopefully this is just the beginning.”
The book is available for presale on Amazon.com and releases on April 7, not long after the Cubs open the 2026 season, affording fans of all ages their opportunity to make their first trip to the bleachers.
And, if you look closely at the book’s cover, you might just catch a glimpse of Reuter’s old place of business.
