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
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
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
In the Mushroom
True foraging isn’t the domain of the weekend warrior; it’s serious, serious business
By Michael Autrey Monday, December 2, 2024
The Brahmin and His Imaginary Friend
How a classic paean to the honest virtues of a Maine fisherman obscured several ugly truths
By Janna Malamud Smith Monday, December 2, 2024
Granaries of Language
Dictionaries are far more than alphabetized collections of words
By Ilan Stavans Monday, December 2, 2024
Reborn in the City of Light
At a time when Paris was an incubator of modernism, a group of bold American women arrived to make art out of their lives
By Rosanna Warren Thursday, October 24, 2024
Thoreau’s Pencils
How might a newly discovered
connection to slavery change
our understanding of an abolitionist
hero and his writing?
By Augustine Sedgewick Thursday, October 17, 2024
Searching for Tommy and Rosie
What my mother’s diaries told me about her life and my own
By Mike Rose Thursday, March 3, 2022
2022: A Space Emergency
Without international agreements, we are making the heavens dangerously crowded and potentially lethal
By Jeffrey Lewis Tuesday, March 1, 2022
Women’s Burden
We like to think the painful sacrifices our mothers made are in the past. But are they?
By Garry Wills Tuesday, March 1, 2022
Portrait of a Marriage in Six Homes
The places that sheltered my life with Shirley
By Witold Rybczynski Monday, February 14, 2022
Never Take Hope From the Patient
Sometimes the best treatment includes a healthy dose of optimism, even when it’s not warranted
By Patrick Tripp Saturday, February 12, 2022
From Murderpan to Mattapan
A writer’s traumatic experiences lead him to travel in time to the places where he was hurt
By Quentin Lucas Saturday, January 29, 2022
Lessons From an Unwritten Autobiography
From doubt and despair to faith and love
By Jack Miles Thursday, January 20, 2022
