Books & the Arts

Violette Verdy in George Balanchine's Jewels, 1967.

Elements of Style Elements of Style

The legendary Balanchine dancer Violette Verdy embodies the alchemy that turns music into meaning.

Jul 30, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Marina Harss

Chucky Taylor

Chucky Taylor, Liberia’s Other Monster Chucky Taylor, Liberia’s Other Monster

The fate of Liberia was ensnared by uniquely American pathologies.

Jul 30, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Aaron Leaf

Paul Beatty (credit: Hannah Assouline)

Paul Beatty’s Savage Satire Paul Beatty’s Savage Satire

The Sellout takes aim at black middle-class foibles and fantasies.

Jul 30, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Jesse McCarthy

Joseph Mitchell.

The Most Eccentric New Yorkers and the Writer Who Loved Them The Most Eccentric New Yorkers and the Writer Who Loved Them

Joseph Mitchell and his subjects were “all freaks together.”

Jul 16, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Robert S. Boynton

Tangerine Dream

Trans Sex Workers Seek Comfort and Vengeance in Sean Baker’s ‘Tangerine’ Trans Sex Workers Seek Comfort and Vengeance in Sean Baker’s ‘Tangerine’

Sin-Dee and Alexandra find little solace on the LA streets except in each other.

Jul 16, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Stuart Klawans

Illustration by Doug Chayka

Can We Cure Genetic Diseases Without Slipping Into Eugenics? Can We Cure Genetic Diseases Without Slipping Into Eugenics?

Gene editing could correct genetic mutations for serious illnesses. Will it also create a new eugenics of personal choice?

Jul 16, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Nathaniel Comfort

Tony Judt

The NYRB Is Rewriting Tony Judt’s Stance on Israel The NYRB Is Rewriting Tony Judt’s Stance on Israel

Judt called for a just resolution to the conflict, not the preservation of a “Jewish State.”

Jul 14, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Muhammad Idrees Ahmad

Rachel Cusk

The Passivity Project The Passivity Project

In Rachel Cusk’s fiction, the self is suppressed to the point of destruction.

Jul 2, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Alexandra Schwartz

Protest at the New York Public Library, March 11, 2014.

Patience and Fortitude Patience and Fortitude

Scott Sherman’s masterful history of the fight to save the NYPL.

Jul 2, 2015 / Books & the Arts / John Palattella

Three Figures

The 2015 Venice Biennale The 2015 Venice Biennale

Islands of meaning in a morass of incoherence.

Jul 2, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

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