Stephanie Bastek

Stephanie Bastek is the senior editor of the Scholar and the producer/host of the Smarty Pants podcast.

The Art of Doing Nothing Much, Together

Sheila Liming on the importance of chillaxing

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday March 31, 2023

Cherry Blossom Bonanza

Naoko Abe on how an English eccentric saved Japan’s beloved cherry trees—and spread them around the world

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday March 24, 2023

Filling in the Fragments

Diane Rayor on translating the poetry of Sappho

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday March 17, 2023

Reading the Trail Trees

Alexander Nemerov on his efforts to resurrect the spirits of our lost woods

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday March 10, 2023

Chaucer’s Leading Lady

Marion Turner on our enduring fascination with the Wife of Bath

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday March 3, 2023

The Comic Queen of Metafiction

Gunnhild Øyehaug talks about her twisted new collection of short stories

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday February 24, 2023

Justice, Arrested

Joanna Schwartz on the difficulty of holding the police accountable

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday February 17, 2023

Past is Present

Marie Arana on how violence, exploitation, and religion have ruled Latin America’s history—and might portend its future

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday February 10, 2023

The Promised Land of the Pampas

Javier Sinay on the forgotten history of the first Jewish immigrants in Argentina

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday February 3, 2023

Medieval Madams

Eleanor Janega on the overlooked lives of ordinary women

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday January 27, 2023

Blades of Grass

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday August 21, 2026

The Translator Stuck

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday August 7, 2026

Riot Girls

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday July 24, 2026

To the Manor Born

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday July 10, 2026

The Geek Squad

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday June 12, 2026

For Better or for Wurst

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday May 15, 2026

Safe From Sin

By Stephanie Bastek | Friday April 17, 2026

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