SPOTLIGHT

In Defense of Difficult Reading

The tomes of the past cultivate the lost art of sustained attention

By Todd Shy Friday, June 5, 2026

SPOTLIGHT

In Defense of Difficult Reading

The tomes of the past cultivate the lost art of sustained attention

By Todd Shy Friday, June 5, 2026

Article

The Story of Mumbet

Who was the enslaved woman whose burial site at a Berkshires cemetery draws so much reverence and respect?

Asturias Days

Slightly Proud

Read Me a Poem

“The Lambs Are Not for Sale” by Paula Bohince

Poems read aloud, beautifully

Fiction

Inheritance

Smarty Pants Podcast

For Better or for Wurst

Jamie Loftus on the wild American world of hot dogs

Article

The Final Word

The death of Gabby Petito and the uncomfortable intimacy of vocal re-creation software

Asturias Days

Wonderful Life

Read Me a Poem

“The Boy Died in My Alley” by Gwendolyn Brooks

Poems read aloud, beautifully

Asturias Days

Camino Vecinal

Read Me a Poem

“On the Threshold” by Amy Levy

Poems read aloud, beautifully

Cover Story

You Must Remember This

On the nature of autobiographical memory

Smarty Pants Podcast

Weather Kids and Panther Cubs

Zayd Ayers Dohrn on growing up on the run and in his parents’ revolutionary shadow

Book Reviews

Books Are a Star’s Best Friend

The little-known reading habits of a Hollywood icon

Asturias Days

Hogar

Read Me a Poem

“The Field of Waterloo” by Thomas Hardy

Poems read aloud, beautifully

Portrait of the Artist

Ceci Richardson-Salvador

A river runs through the gallery

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The act of rendering plays from Romanian to English has allowed me to discover my family’s past—and myself

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The tangled terrain of untrammeled lands

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