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
Acting Out
One tortuous journey from stage to screen
By Rachel Shteir Monday, May 27, 2024
Cocktails with George and Martha: Movies, Marriage and the Making of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?by Philip Gefter
Red Tide Warning
Living on Florida’s Gulf Coast means having to coexist with pervasive and toxic algal blooms—and neighbors who don’t always believe what they see
By Lenore Myka Thursday, May 16, 2024
Tramping With Virginia
A seminal essay about walking the streets of London can present challenges in the classrooms of today
By Emily Fox Gordon Thursday, May 9, 2024
The Redoubtable Bull Shark
Reflecting on one of nature’s most dangerous predators
By John Gifford Thursday, May 2, 2024
Good Vibrations
One eccentric’s desert landmark allows visitors to bathe in sound
By Eric Wills Monday, April 15, 2024
I So Wish That You Remembered
The gift of song from a daughter to her elderly mother
By Julia Lichtblau Thursday, April 4, 2024
Thought Experimenter
Will AI really make our world better?
By Sam Kean Monday, April 1, 2024
The Heart and the Chip: Our Bright Future with Robotsby Daniela Rus and Gregory Mone
My Name Is Emily
What we call ourselves—and what
others call us—can be both a burden and a gift
By Emily Bernard Thursday, March 28, 2024
Lunching With Rabi
An afternoon spent in the company of an illustrious physicist
By Jay Neugeboren Friday, March 22, 2024
