The Cinema of Societal Collapse The Cinema of Societal Collapse
This year’s Oscar-nominated international feature films—especially The Secret Agent and Sirāt—tackle what it means to live and die under tyranny.
Mar 5, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Vikram Murthi
Can the Dictionary Keep Up? Can the Dictionary Keep Up?
In Stefan Fatsis’s capacious, and at times score-settling, personal history of the reference book, he reveals what the dictionary can still tell us about language in modern life
Mar 4, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Lora Kelley
Why We Misunderstand the Chinese Internet Why We Misunderstand the Chinese Internet
Journalist Yi-Ling Liu’s The Wall Dancers traces how the Internet affected daily life in China, showing how similar this corner of the Web is to the one experienced in the West.
Mar 3, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Rebecca Liu
The Bad Vibes of “Wuthering Heights” The Bad Vibes of “Wuthering Heights”
Keeping its distance from the novel, Emerald Fennell’s film ends up offering us a mirror of our own times.
Mar 2, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Sarah Chihaya
Has Contemporary Fiction Ignored the Working Class? Has Contemporary Fiction Ignored the Working Class?
Claire Baglin’s bracing On the Clock gives its readers a close look at work behind the fry station, and in the process asks what experiences are missing from mainstream letters.
Feb 26, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Rachel Vorona Cote
Werner Herzog Between Fact and Fiction Werner Herzog Between Fact and Fiction
The German auteur’s recent book presents a strange, idiosyncratic vision of the concept of “truth,” one that defines how he sees the world and his art.
Feb 25, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Lowry Pressly
Do Humans Really Understand the World’s Disorderly Rivers? Do Humans Really Understand the World’s Disorderly Rivers?
In James C. Scott’s last book, In Praise of Floods, he questions the limits of human hegemony and our misplaced sense that we have any control over the Earth’s depleted watershed....
Feb 24, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Daniel Sherrell
The Scramble for Lithium The Scramble for Lithium
Thea Riofrancos’s Extraction tells the story of how a critical mineral became the focus of a worldwide battle over the future of green energy and, by extension, capitalism.
Feb 23, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Casey A. Williams
“The Pitt” Shows Doctoring Uncensored “The Pitt” Shows Doctoring Uncensored
The second season tackles everything from the role of AI in medicine to Medicaid cuts. But above all, it is about burnout.
Feb 19, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Zoe Adams
Jafar Panahi’s Scenes From a Crime Jafar Panahi’s Scenes From a Crime
His films show how a regime’s wrongdoing can upend one’s sense of self and transform the very rhythm of daily life.
Feb 18, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Alex Kong