Joan Didion’s California Joan Didion’s California
How the splendor and chaos of the Golden State explains the writer’s vision of the world
Dec 29, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Emma Hager
The Ardor of “Licorice Pizza” The Ardor of “Licorice Pizza”
Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film is his most personal work yet.
Dec 29, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Vikram Murthi
Another Name for America Is Time Another Name for America Is Time
after Wanda Coleman JuneWe die. JuneSoon we die in March, April, May JuneMother may I? Yes you may. JuneMother, your back is turned. Ah, there’s your face. JuneWe march. JuneJanua…
Dec 28, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Ama Codjoe
Forever Homeless Forever Homeless
Before my long travel, I pack my suitcases, stuff them with some sand from our land, some scent from my mother’s kitchen and sounds of birds in the morning. And in my pockets, I pu…
Dec 28, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Mosab Abu Toha
Maggie Nelson and the Evolving Politics of Liberation Maggie Nelson and the Evolving Politics of Liberation
In her new book, Nelson examines the politics of freedom on the left and the right.
Dec 28, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Jennifer Wilson
The Anti-Intellectual Intellectuals of the Conservative Movement The Anti-Intellectual Intellectuals of the Conservative Movement
Why is Mark Levin’s American Marxism so popular?
Dec 27, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Michael Kazin
The Best Albums of 2021 The Best Albums of 2021
Our music critic’s 10 favorite pieces of music from this year.
Dec 24, 2021 / Books & the Arts / David Hajdu
Alfred Döblin’s Surreal Foray Into Climate Fiction Alfred Döblin’s Surreal Foray Into Climate Fiction
The 20th-century German writer’s novel Mountains Oceans Giants is a stunning and strange look into what an environmental apocalypse might look like.
Dec 21, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Joe Bucciero
What’s New in the New “West Side Story”? What’s New in the New “West Side Story”?
In Steven Spielberg’s version, we get a film that offers a far more inclusive vision of postwar America but one that still retains its flawed view of working-class tribalism.
Dec 20, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Ed Morales
The Startling Postcolonial Poetics of “Coolitude” The Startling Postcolonial Poetics of “Coolitude”
Khal Thorabully’s epic poem “re-voices” the history of Indian indentured migration, and in the process imagines a new kind of transoceanic political solidarity.
Dec 16, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Aditya Bahl