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
Verde
Learning a foreign language isn’t just about improving cognitive function—it can teach us to sense the world anew
By Jesse Lee Kercheval Thursday, December 12, 2024
Aging Out
Many of us do not go gentle into that good night
By Anne Matthews Thursday, December 5, 2024
Golden Years: How Americans Invented and Reinvented Old Age by James Chappel
Under a Spell Everlasting
Thomas Mann’s Magic Mountain, published a century ago, tells of a world unable to free itself from the cataclysm of war
By Samantha Rose Hill Monday, December 2, 2024
Divided Providence
Faith’s pivotal role in the outcome of the Civil War
By Robert Wilson Monday, December 2, 2024
Righteous Strife: How Warring Religious Nationalists Forged Lincoln’s Union by Richard Carwardine
The Fair Fields 
Only rarely did the outside world intrude on an idyllic Connecticut childhood, but in the tumultuous 1960s, that intrusion included an encounter with evil
By Rosanna Warren Monday, December 2, 2024
Ideology as Anatomy
How shifting ideas about women’s bodies have affected their lives
By Sierra Bellows Monday, December 2, 2024
Immaculate Forms: A History of the Female Body in Four Parts by Helen King
Frontline Oracle
A new biography of America’s most beloved grunt reporter
By Elizabeth D. Samet Thursday, June 1, 2023
The Soldier’s Truth: Ernie Pyle and the Story of World War IIby David Chrisinger
We Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet
After Covid-19, what might be next?
By Priscilla Long Thursday, June 1, 2023
Blight: Fungi and the Coming Pandemicby Emily Monosson
False Prophets
A recent film about a Black megachurch is often hilarious, but its flaws reside in the story it doesn’t tell
By Sharon Sochil Washington Thursday, June 1, 2023
Don’t Forget Intuition
The art of doing science
By Sam Kean Thursday, June 1, 2023
In a Flight of Starlings: The Wonders of Complex Systemsby Giorgio Parisi
Putting the Story Back in History
Hayden White on truth, facts, and the allure of a well-told tale
By Robert Zaretsky Thursday, June 1, 2023
Shell Shock and Awe
The enduring terror of the trenches
By Henry Allen Thursday, June 1, 2023
Soldiers Don’t Go Mad: A Story of Brotherhood, Poetry, and Mental Illness During the First World Warby Charles Glass
Notes and Outtakes
Good writing never gets old
By Robert Wilson Thursday, June 1, 2023
Tabula Rasa: Volume 1by John McPhee
In the Aftermath of Civil War
The art of observance in the lyrics of Vidyan Ravinthiran
By Langdon Hammer Thursday, June 1, 2023
Get Me Rewrite!
The relationship between a renowned author and a consummate editor can sometimes make for high drama
By Eric Wills Thursday, June 1, 2023
