Chester Himes’s Harlem Noirs Chester Himes’s Harlem Noirs
Himes helped reinvent the idea of the detective novel. He also transformed it into a powerful vehicle for social criticism.
Oct 20, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Gene Seymour
Walter Lippmann’s Phantom Publics Walter Lippmann’s Phantom Publics
Arguably no American journalist wielded as much influence as Walter Lippmann did in the 20th century. But what did he do with that power?
Oct 15, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Gerald Howard
How the Capitalism of the 1980s Created Donald Trump’s Theory of the State How the Capitalism of the 1980s Created Donald Trump’s Theory of the State
The proliferation of privately held companies during the Reagan years laid the foundations for Trump’s approach to government.
Oct 14, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Kim Phillips-Fein
The Triumphs and Travails of American Marxism The Triumphs and Travails of American Marxism
Karl Marx never visited the United States, but he and his ideas left an imprint nonetheless.
Oct 13, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Robin Blackburn
The Shortest Presidential Campaign The Shortest Presidential Campaign
Kamala Harris’s 107 Days offers a devastating indictment of Joe Biden. It also documents the limits of her own politics.
Sep 26, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Jeet Heer
The Lost Souls of the Internet The Lost Souls of the Internet
In Searches, Vauhini Vara probes the ways that we rely on the Internet and how we periodically attempt to free ourselves from its grip.
Sep 10, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Laila Lalami
Susan Choi’s Big Novel of History Susan Choi’s Big Novel of History
In Flashlight, Choi examines the tragedies—past and present—that haunt a family living in Japan.
Sep 10, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Sarah Chihaya
The Ghosts of Ingeborg Bachmann The Ghosts of Ingeborg Bachmann
Haunted by a dark past, the poet and novelist tried to explore the limits of language itself.
Sep 9, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Becca Rothfeld
The Catastrophe of Democratic Foreign Policy The Catastrophe of Democratic Foreign Policy
A new book on the Biden’s wars serves as a stark reminder that the Democrats need to formulate a new foreign policy—as well as reckon with the one they had.
Sep 9, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Matthew Duss
James Baldwin’s Radical Politics of Love James Baldwin’s Radical Politics of Love
While Baldwin was persecuted in part because of whom he loved, it was love that impelled him to bring about a more utopian future in which such persecution was not possible.
Sep 9, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Elias Rodriques