Literary Criticism

Sigrid Nunez On and Off the Big Screen

Sigrid Nunez On and Off the Big Screen Sigrid Nunez On and Off the Big Screen

Two new films—Pedro Almodóvar’s The Room Next Door and Scott McGehee and David Siegel’s The Friend—attempt to adapt her work. Do they succeed?

Apr 9, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Sarah Chihaya

A depiction of Herod the Great.

Zora Neale Hurston’s Lost Roman Epic Zora Neale Hurston’s Lost Roman Epic

In The Life of Herod the Great, we get a novel full of intrigue, betrayal, and revolution.

Apr 9, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Edna Bonhomme

Old Chapel Lane, Skibbereen, County Cork in 1846.

What Caused the Irish Famine? What Caused the Irish Famine?

A new book offers a comprehensive and heartbreaking account of the most terrible catastrophe to befall Ireland in the modern era.

Apr 8, 2025 / Books & the Arts / John Banville

The Rebellions of Murray Kempton

The Rebellions of Murray Kempton The Rebellions of Murray Kempton

One of his generation’s most prolific journalists, Kempton never turned a blind eye to the inequalities all around him.

Apr 8, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Vivian Gornick

Agnes Callard and the Examined Life

Agnes Callard and the Examined Life Agnes Callard and the Examined Life

In her new book, Callard makes the case that we should all live more philosophically but where does politics fit in?

Apr 8, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Olúfémi O. Táíwò

The Making of a Cold War Spy

The Making of a Cold War Spy The Making of a Cold War Spy

The life and work of Frank Wisner, one of the CIA’s founding officers, offers us a portrait of American intelligence’s excesses.

Mar 11, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Adam Hochschild

The Cruel World According to Stephen Miller

The Cruel World According to Stephen Miller The Cruel World According to Stephen Miller

How did he become the Trump era’s architect of hate? 

Mar 10, 2025 / Books & the Arts / David Klion

Henri Bergson’s States of Change

Henri Bergson’s States of Change Henri Bergson’s States of Change

Why did one of the early 20th century’s most famous philosophers go out of fashion?

Feb 11, 2025 / Books & the Arts / John Banville

The Making and Remaking of Karl Marx’s  “Capital”

The Making and Remaking of Karl Marx’s “Capital” The Making and Remaking of Karl Marx’s “Capital”

In the first English translation in half a century, Paul Reitter and Paul North distill the essence of the Marxist masterpiece by going back to basics.

Feb 10, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Alyssa Battistoni

Fady Joudah’s Poetry of Dislocation

Fady Joudah’s Poetry of Dislocation Fady Joudah’s Poetry of Dislocation

In his new book of poetry, […], the poet, translator, and ER doctor explores Palestinians’ experiences of exile and displacement—and the difficulty of healing amid the ongoing Nak...

Jan 14, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Hussein Omar

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