Books and Ideas

Statue of Liberty

What Might the World Look Like in 2025? What Might the World Look Like in 2025?

A dispatch from the future.

Feb 15, 2022 / John Feffer

The Immortal Influence of Greg Tate

The Immortal Influence of Greg Tate The Immortal Influence of Greg Tate

His writing will be a touchstone for generations of critics to come.

Feb 14, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Stephen Kearse

Three stacks of 100 dollar bills.

How the “American Dream” Became Un-American How the “American Dream” Became Un-American

When plutocrats defend it, and democrats bewail its passing, it’s time to recall the original meaning of the phrase.

Feb 10, 2022 / Maria Bustillos

Manthia Diawara in the Archive of Postcolonialism

Manthia Diawara in the Archive of Postcolonialism Manthia Diawara in the Archive of Postcolonialism

His films put into practice the history of radical Black thought by placing generations of thinkers in conversation.

Feb 10, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Elias Rodriques

Book Bans Are on the Rise. But Librarians and Authors Are Fighting Back.

Book Bans Are on the Rise. But Librarians and Authors Are Fighting Back. Book Bans Are on the Rise. But Librarians and Authors Are Fighting Back.

In the past few decades in the US, book banning has taken on a decidedly more genteel character.

Feb 8, 2022 / Katrina vanden Heuvel

Palin Redux

Palin Redux Palin Redux

Sarah Palin flouts a New York ordinance by dining in an Upper East Side restaurant unvaccinated.—News reports Refusing the vaccine means freedom, she says, And no one can ever nega…

Feb 8, 2022 / Column / Calvin Trillin

The Haunted World of Edith Wharton

The Haunted World of Edith Wharton The Haunted World of Edith Wharton

Whether exploring the dread of everyday life or the horrors of the occult, her ghost tales documented an America haunted by the specters of isolation, class, and despair. 

Feb 8, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Krithika Varagur

What Art Spiegelman’s “Maus” Means to the Children of Survivors

What Art Spiegelman’s “Maus” Means to the Children of Survivors What Art Spiegelman’s “Maus” Means to the Children of Survivors

On banning the book that changed what we talk about when we talk about the Holocaust.

Feb 4, 2022 / Linda Mannheim

In Search of Self-Destruction on an Oil Rig

In Search of Self-Destruction on an Oil Rig In Search of Self-Destruction on an Oil Rig

Tabitha Lasley’s Sea State is an intimate and blistering memoir of a writer’s life amidst the UK’s offshore natural gas industry.

Feb 3, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Jess Bergman

The Limits of Understanding the Pandemic Philosophically

The Limits of Understanding the Pandemic Philosophically The Limits of Understanding the Pandemic Philosophically

Byung-Chul Han’s The Palliative Society tries to contextualize the emotional and cultural ramifications of Covid-19 without ever addressing its material consequences.

Feb 1, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Clinton Williamson

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