Books & the Arts

“Portrait of Juan de Pareja,” by Diego Velázquez

The Many Ghosts of Juan de Pareja The Many Ghosts of Juan de Pareja

Through the life of the 17th-century artist, we can find an entangled history of slavery, Black figuration, and art.

Jul 11, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Rachel Hunter Himes

Aleksandar Hemon’s Kaleidoscopic Fiction of War and Peace

Aleksandar Hemon’s Kaleidoscopic Fiction of War and Peace Aleksandar Hemon’s Kaleidoscopic Fiction of War and Peace

While most of his studies of dislocation were set in the present, in his new novel he examines a lost past.

Jul 10, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Adam Kirsch

Orizaba, Veracruz State, Mexico.

A Dark Tour Through Fernanda Melchor’s Veracruz A Dark Tour Through Fernanda Melchor’s Veracruz

Before she was a novelist, she covered crime and human interest for Mexican magazines. A collection of her nonfiction, This Is Not Miami,shows the building blocks of her fiction.&n...

Jul 6, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Laura Adamczyk

A scene from “Asteroid City.”

Is “Asteroid City” Wes Anderson’s Greatest Film? Is “Asteroid City” Wes Anderson’s Greatest Film?

In his latest film, Anderson asks us how art and storytelling give our lives meaning.

Jul 5, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Jorge Cotte

Mario Vargas Llosa, London, 1986.

The Miseducation of Mario Vargas Llosa The Miseducation of Mario Vargas Llosa

A recent collection, The Call of the Tribe, explains why the Peruvian writer rejected the left and embraced the thinking of Friedrich Hayek and his ilk.

Jul 5, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Jack Hanson

Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubley of Yo La Tengo in New York City, 2022.

Yo La Tengo’s Lifelong Love Story Yo La Tengo’s Lifelong Love Story

Across decades, the venerable band has quietly pioneered an intimate form of rock, at once adventurous and deeply personal.

Jul 3, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Vikram Murthi

Josh Hawley, 2021.

Is Josh Hawley All Right? Is Josh Hawley All Right?

His new book Manhood advocates for a return to ancient values of family and masculinity. In reality, it reveals the Missouri senator’s weird fixations.

Jun 29, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Ginny Hogan

The Long and Sometimes Lost History of Trans

The Long and Sometimes Lost History of Trans The Long and Sometimes Lost History of Trans

To borrow a phrase from the photographer and activist Samra Habib, “We have always been here”—or, at least, people somewhat like us have always been here.

Jun 28, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Stephanie Burt

Franklin Delano Roosevelt at his inauguration in 1933.

When FDR Took On the Supreme Court When FDR Took On the Supreme Court

The standard narrative of Roosevelt's court-packing efforts casts them as a failure. But what if they were a success?

Jun 27, 2023 / Books & the Arts / John Fabian Witt

Don DeLillo’s Cold Wars

Don DeLillo’s Cold Wars Don DeLillo’s Cold Wars

His 1980s novels take the story of America’s postwar years, usually seen as a triumphal rise to perpetual dominance, and converts it into one about a long and chaotic decline.

Jun 26, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Siddhartha Deb

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