Emily St. John Mandel’s Neatly Designed Worlds Emily St. John Mandel’s Neatly Designed Worlds
Her new novel, a time travel story called Sea of Tranquility, presents a universe lacking in loose ends or messiness.
Apr 11, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Sophia Nguyen
The Hollow Narrative of HBO’s “Gilded Age” The Hollow Narrative of HBO’s “Gilded Age”
The TV show is guilty of the greatest crime any fiction about the 19th century can commit—not getting it wrong, but making it dull.
Apr 7, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Jake Bittle
How Can Puerto Rico Escape the Debt Trap? How Can Puerto Rico Escape the Debt Trap?
When it comes to Puerto Rico, the questions of debt haunt everyday life and shape the colonial reality of the island.
Apr 6, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Ed Morales
Green Tomatoes in Fire Season Green Tomatoes in Fire Season
There is smoke in the air when I go pick them. I go despite panic, also because inside I’ll make chutney. For an hour or so, I unlatch them. It is late fall. They will not ripen. F…
Apr 5, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Tess Taylor
The Fantasias of Niki de Saint Phalle The Fantasias of Niki de Saint Phalle
Apr 5, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Jillian Steinhauer
Home Movie Home Movie
Strewn across the floors their toys and things, a video cassette the dad had written “We used to have more of these” on, the kitchen in a state of high party, boxed cakes half eate…
Apr 5, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Jana Prikryl
The Many American Revolutions The Many American Revolutions
Woody Holton’s Liberty is Sweet charts not only the contest with Great Britain over “home rule” but also the internal struggle over who should rule at home.
Apr 4, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Eric Foner
Nadav Lapid’s Cinema of Shame Nadav Lapid’s Cinema of Shame
His new film Ahed’s Knee is a shallow cri de coeur against the Israeli state.
Mar 31, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Kaleem Hawa
Landscapes of the Mind Landscapes of the Mind
On Joseph E. Yoakum and Etel Adnan.
Mar 29, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky
Kanye the Careerist Kanye the Careerist
A three-part Netflix documentary on the rapper’s rise unintentionally shows the depths of West’s cynicism.
Mar 28, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Jordan Coley