Big Thinker
The diplomat who argued for “containment”—and lived to regret it
By James Gibney Wednesday, November 30, 2011
George F. Kennan: An American Life By John Lewis Gaddis
The Nature of Things
An ancient poem’s appeal
By Sissela Bok Wednesday, November 30, 2011
The Swerve: How the World Became Modern By Stephen Greenblatt
The Gravity of Falling
Having hurtled through the American century, we are distracted and confused. But can we find our way again?
By Edward Hoagland Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Irregular Guy
The sage of Baker Street
By William Howarth Wednesday, November 30, 2011
On Conan Doyle: Or, the Whole Art of Storytelling By Michael Dirda
Memento Mori
A mother’s grief
By Britt Peterson Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Blue Nights By Joan Didion
A Jew in the Northwest
Exile, ethnicity, and the search for the perfect futon
By William Deresiewicz Wednesday, November 30, 2011
His Hour Upon the Stage
As a lifelong reader of Shakespeare’s plays, Lincoln had reservations about how they were presented
By Douglas L. Wilson Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Fields Apart
Physics, past and future
By Sam Kean Wednesday, November 30, 2011
The Infinity PuzzleBy Frank Close / Physics on the Fringe By Margaret Wertheim
St. Augustine and the Hall of Memory
Like the philosopher, my aunt kept house in her imagination, tending to the sensations and images of the past
By Greta Austin Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Island Royalty
A new biography of a Caribbean revolutionary
By Madison Smartt Bell Monday, January 13, 2025
The First and Last King of Haiti: The Rise and Fall of Henry Christopheby Marlene L. Daut
The Writer in the Family
The fiction of E. L. Doctorow gave a young man hope of connecting his father and his literary hero
By Jonathan Liebson Wednesday, January 8, 2025
The Weight of a Stone
Searching for stability in an erratic world led Oliver Sacks and other writers to the realms of geology
By Megan Craig Thursday, January 2, 2025
“The Horses” by Edwin Muir
Poems read aloud, beautifully
By Amanda Holmes Tuesday, December 31, 2024
The Snow Maiden
Our final episode of 2018 is a send-off to the solstice
By Stephanie Bastek Monday, December 30, 2024
Ho Ho Horror
Why not make this Christmas a little darker?
By Stephanie Bastek Friday, December 27, 2024
