Fortune’s Son Fortune’s Son
Why the line from Barry Goldwater to Ted Cruz runs over Nelson Rockefeller.
Feb 4, 2015 / Books & the Arts / Michael O’Donnell
Plugged Into the Socket of Life Plugged Into the Socket of Life
Behind Richard Pryor’s jokes and barbs was a man yearning to be free.
Nov 25, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Scott Saul
Strange History Strange History
John Lahr’s biography of Tennessee William gets mired down in psychoanalysis.
Oct 28, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Julia M. Klein
In Our Orbit: A Tolerance for Ambiguity In Our Orbit: A Tolerance for Ambiguity
In The Good Spy, Kai Bird documents the life of CIA agent Robert Ames, a sincere and unlikely mediator in the Middle East.
Jul 29, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Cecilia D’Anastasio
Sweeter Than the Sweet Sweeter Than the Sweet
For the Staple Singers and Stax Records, political engagement flowed from an artistic renaissance.
Jul 2, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Aaron Cohen
From Visionary to the Fringe From Visionary to the Fringe
Immanuel Velikovsky’s strange quest for a scientific theory of everything
Mar 26, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Paula Findlen
Ball of Fire Ball of Fire
The life and unvarnished style of Barbara Stanwyck.
Mar 4, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Charles Taylor
Whistler’s Battles Whistler’s Battles
Ambitious beneath his pose of indolence, James McNeill Whistler was the most contradictory of artists.
Feb 19, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky
Abie’s Yiddish Muse Abie’s Yiddish Muse
Like a lot of red revolutionaries, Abraham Cahan ended up to the right of where he began.
Jan 29, 2014 / Books & the Arts / D.D. Guttenplan
‘Think of Me With Joy’ ‘Think of Me With Joy’
The worlds of Sholem Aleichem.
Jan 22, 2014 / Books & the Arts / Julia M. Klein