Books & the Arts

MGMT Andrew VanWyndarden performing at Coachella 2014

Music for Dark Times Music for Dark Times

MGMT and Poliça’s new albums offer songs of solace and alarm.

Mar 8, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Bijan Stephen

Waiting for Steven Pinker’s Enlightenment

Waiting for Steven Pinker’s Enlightenment Waiting for Steven Pinker’s Enlightenment

The genre that Pinker’s latest book most closely resembles is not 18th-century philosophie but a TED Talk.

Mar 7, 2018 / Books & the Arts / David A. Bell

Zadie Smith’s Dream City

Zadie Smith’s Dream City Zadie Smith’s Dream City

In a moment when ideological surety is the order of the day, Feel Free asks us to remember that another mode of thought is possible.

Mar 6, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Ismail Muhammad

Atlanta's Donald Glover and Lakeith Stanfield

The Surrealist Grace of Donald Glover’s ‘Atlanta’  The Surrealist Grace of Donald Glover’s ‘Atlanta’ 

At any given moment, it can feel like a family drama, a Southern Gothic horror story, and a sketch comedy.

Mar 2, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Evan Kindley

Rejjie Snow’s Borderless Music

Rejjie Snow’s Borderless Music Rejjie Snow’s Borderless Music

Dear Annie, the Irish rapper’s studio debut, is a striking picture of international collaboration.

Feb 28, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Briana Younger

Daniel Joseph Martinez’s Blunt Statements

Daniel Joseph Martinez’s Blunt Statements Daniel Joseph Martinez’s Blunt Statements

What does it mean for an American artist to make photographs using the image of the German revolutionary Ulrike Meinhof?

Feb 23, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

‘Black Panther,’ Beyond Expectations

‘Black Panther,’ Beyond Expectations ‘Black Panther,’ Beyond Expectations

The big-budget pop movie surprises with themes and emotions that might escape the attention of action fans but are present all the same.

Feb 22, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Where the wall meets the river

Where the wall meets the river Where the wall meets the river

the neighbors who begged it built are astonished they can no longer see the river taste it sweeten it for the fevered child Where the wall meets the river the neighbors cease to be…

Feb 22, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Shanna Compton

Christa Wolf’s Life Under Surveillance

Christa Wolf’s Life Under Surveillance Christa Wolf’s Life Under Surveillance

In her diaries, the German novelist recorded a life of watching and being watched.

Feb 22, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Becca Rothfeld

In the Cuban Sphere

In the Cuban Sphere In the Cuban Sphere

Was Cuba under Castro a model for anti-imperialism in Latin America or a source of instability in the region?

Feb 21, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Patrick Iber

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