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 Christophe by 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
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
Fit the Description
A famous photojournalist crashes a lunch date; hijinks ensue
By Jack Pendarvis Tuesday, September 4, 2018
A Proximity to Greatness
How a reclusive writer’s work came to be published
By Jerome Charyn Tuesday, September 4, 2018
After Emily: Two Remarkable Women, and the Legacy of America’s Greatest Poetby Julie Dobrow
Under the Passaic Falls
Photographing an abandoned community
By Noelani Kirschner Monday, June 4, 2018
In the Labyrinth of #MeToo
Addressing sexual aggression and power in contemporary society also means questioning what the feminist movement has really been about
By Sandra M. Gilbert Monday, June 4, 2018
The Traveler in a Shrinking World
Four questions on the future of world travel
By Jeffrey Tayler Monday, June 4, 2018
Robben Island Days
A South African leader’s jailhouse correspondence during apartheid
By Douglas Foster Monday, June 4, 2018
The Prison Letters of Nelson Mandelaedited by Sahm Venter
Monstrous Achievement
Two hundred years on, a writer’s cautionary tale still captivates
By Valerie Martin Monday, June 4, 2018
In Search of Mary Shelley: The Girl Who Wrote Frankenstein by Fiona Sampson
Working for Bobby
Fifty years ago, I campaigned for RFK for president, and was nearby when the dream died with him
By Steven L. Isenberg Monday, June 4, 2018
The Times They Are a-Changin’
In the music industry, pushing for gender equality is key
By Katy Kelleher Monday, June 4, 2018
