On the Trail with an Arkansas Traveler
Charles Portis looked past our national mythology to portray the real America
By Richard Tillinghast Thursday, June 18, 2026
The Guilt of Victory and the Virtue of Defeat 
Wrestling with war and its aftermath
By David Stromberg Monday, March 2, 2026
Too Alone in This World, Yet Not
A newly opened archive reveals further contradictions about a poet steeped in paradox
By Elena S. Danielson Thursday, November 27, 2025
A Poet of the Soil
The legacy of a writer who struggled with his celebrity
By Richard Tillinghast Friday, September 27, 2024
The Letters of Seamus Heaney selected and edited by Christopher Reid
Patience, Practice, Perseverance
How Octavia E. Butler became a writer
By Lynell George Thursday, September 14, 2023
Will the Real Vergil Please Stand Up?
Making sense of the life of a poet about whom we know so little
By Sarah Ruden Thursday, August 17, 2023
The Friend Zone
Mary Wollstonecraft’s ideas on what makes a marriage tick were downright radical for their time
By Robert Zaretsky Sunday, February 19, 2023
Declassified
How genre-bending tales of espionage emerged from a childhood of pain, anger, and deception
By James Gibney Thursday, December 8, 2022
A Private Spy: The Letters of John le Carré Edited by Tim Cornwell; Viking, 752 pp., $40
Freedom Tales
Long before the contentious school board fights of today, Lydia Maria Child tried to help America’s children understand their country’s racial transgressions
By Lydia Moland Monday, September 19, 2022
Dissident Lit
Vladimir Nabokov and the novel that nourished the souls of a generation of would-be revolutionaries
By Richard Roper Thursday, September 1, 2022
Happily Ever After
The folk tales gathered by the Brothers Grimm not only enchant us; they record the hardships European families endured for centuries
By Wendy Smith Friday, December 7, 2012
Prince of Poets
Mahmoud Darwish was the voice of the Palestinian people—chronicling not just the struggles and political injustices, but also the rhythms of daily life
By David J. Wasserstein Tuesday, September 4, 2012
An Unquenchable Gaiety of Mind
On visits to Cambridge University late in life, Jorge Luis Borges offered revealing last thoughts about his reading and writing
By George Watson Thursday, May 31, 2012
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Essays From the Edge
The Jazz Age novelist’s chronicle of his mental collapse, much derided by his critics, anticipated the rise of autobiographical writing in America
By Patricia Hampl Thursday, March 1, 2012
Sex and the Single Woman
Rediscovering the novels of Iris Owens
By Lisa Zeidner Wednesday, November 30, 2011
When Kerouac Met Kesey
The two counterculture heroes, one representing the Beat ’50s and one the psychedelic ’60s, had a lot less in common than you might expect
By Sterling Lord Thursday, August 25, 2011
Ardent Spirit, Generous Friend
Remembering the novelist Reynolds Price
By David Guy Friday, June 3, 2011
An Italian Tragedy
Discovering a World War II tale that mesmerizes, then horrifies
By Janna Malamud Smith Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Trial and Eros
When Lady Chatterley’s Lover ran afoul of Britain’s 1959 obscenity law, the resulting case had a cast worthy of P.G. Wodehouse
By Ben Yagoda Wednesday, September 1, 2010
