Books & the Arts

A Summer of Special Effects

A Summer of Special Effects A Summer of Special Effects

On one end of the scale, there’s the stroke of cinematic inspiration in A Ghost Story; on the other are CGI inventions like the astonishing Okja.

Jul 21, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Eppur si muove

Eppur si muove Eppur si muove

Here’s where things get weird: Why is it we care? Why can’t we turn it off? And why’s my mind Like this? Time is time, I tell myself here Where I can breathe, pause and think: time…

Jul 13, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Rowan Ricardo Phillips

November Nocturne

November Nocturne November Nocturne

I looked out over the cool rising night, Its soft froth of lamplights and scrubbed out stars Tumbling out over the blue tub, mind’s sky, Cash-only bars, evening everlasting, Triump…

Jul 13, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Rowan Ricardo Phillips

The Spirit of Prog Rock

The Spirit of Prog Rock The Spirit of Prog Rock

Its creative ambitions were engulfed by its pretensions. 

Jul 13, 2017 / Books & the Arts / David Hajdu

Martin Luther’s Revolution

Martin Luther’s Revolution Martin Luther’s Revolution

The Protestant Reformation transformed not just Christianity but also our political and economic worlds.

Jul 12, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Elizabeth Bruenig

A Billionaires’ Republic

A Billionaires’ Republic A Billionaires’ Republic

American democracy has always been threatened by concentrations of wealth as much as those of power.

Jul 11, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Jedediah Britton-Purdy

An Old Story

An Old Story An Old Story

We were made to understand it would be Terrible. Every small want, every niggling urge, Every hate swollen to a kind of epic wind. Livid, the land, and ravaged, like a rageful Drea…

Jun 29, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Tracy K. Smith

The United States Welcomes You

The United States Welcomes You The United States Welcomes You

Why and by whose power were you sent? What do you see that you may wish to steal? Why all this dancing? Why do your dark bodies Drink up the light? What are you demanding That we f…

Jun 29, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Tracy K. Smith

The Ambiguous Sculptures of Melvin Edwards and Rachel Harrison

The Ambiguous Sculptures of Melvin Edwards and Rachel Harrison The Ambiguous Sculptures of Melvin Edwards and Rachel Harrison

Time spent with their work serves as a reminder that most good artists don’t provide ironclad justifications for their choices

Jun 29, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

Socialism’s Past and Future

Socialism’s Past and Future Socialism’s Past and Future

Axel Honneth’s new book seeks to give renewed meaning to the socialist ideal.

Jun 28, 2017 / Books & the Arts / Martin Jay

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