Thomas Mallon’s Theory of the Diary Thomas Mallon’s Theory of the Diary
The New York writer and editor’s diaries of the AIDS era presents a curious case of what we are supposed to expect from private documents that become historical sources.
Oct 7, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Sheila McClear
What Are Drugs For? What Are Drugs For?
A conversation with P.E. Moskowitz about the chemical imbalance theory of depression, the false schism between prescription and recreational drugs, and collective psychic pain.
Sep 11, 2025 / Emmeline Clein
“Declared Intention”: My Immigration Story, and Ours “Declared Intention”: My Immigration Story, and Ours
Like many Americans, I may only be one generation away from birthright citizenship—a concept that defined this country’s promise for so many immigrants.
Jul 30, 2025 / Robert Pinsky
Militarism Has Long Worked to Shield Antisemitism Militarism Has Long Worked to Shield Antisemitism
From the Cold War till Donald Trump, there’s always been a special dispensation for hawkish bigots.
Jul 14, 2025 / Jeet Heer
Joan Didion Undone Joan Didion Undone
Notes to John, posthumously published journal entries chronicling Didion’s therapy sessions, is a peek into the myths and fears that animated her writing life.
Jul 2, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Emma Hager
I Thought David Horowitz Was a Joke—but He Foreshadowed the Trump Coalition I Thought David Horowitz Was a Joke—but He Foreshadowed the Trump Coalition
As an undergrad, I mocked the radical leftist turned reactionary. But with his cruel, vindictive politics taking over the government, he had the last laugh.
May 15, 2025 / David Klion
Chile in Our Hearts Chile in Our Hearts
John Dinges’s revisionist account of Missing.
Apr 29, 2025 / Steven Volk
Donald Trump’s Long Con Donald Trump’s Long Con
Trump’s “Art of” trilogy may be full of willful exaggeration but the books also reveal how the 1980s and ’90s formed his dog-eat-dog worldview.
Apr 7, 2025 / Books & the Arts / John Ganz
The Art of Separating: A Conversation With Haley Mlotek The Art of Separating: A Conversation With Haley Mlotek
The Nation spoke with the author No Fault, a genre-bending examination of marriage and divorce that is one-part cultural history and one-part memoir.
Mar 24, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Gracie Hadland
Art Spiegelman and the Inescapable Shadow of Fascism Art Spiegelman and the Inescapable Shadow of Fascism
The creator of Maus has learned that the past is always present.
Mar 3, 2025 / Jeet Heer