Books and Ideas

NSA headquarters in Washington, D.C., 2006.

Lurking in the Shadows of the Deep State Lurking in the Shadows of the Deep State

A conversation with the journalist Kerry Howley about her reporting on whistleblowers, drone warfare, and an upcoming film adaptation of her writing on NSA leaker Reality Winner. ...

Apr 3, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Rhoda Feng

The TikTok social media platform's logo is reflected in the eye of a 13-year-old boy as he looks at a computer screen in Bath, England.

“In Techno Parentis”: Who Should Regulate the Online Lives of Teenagers? “In Techno Parentis”: Who Should Regulate the Online Lives of Teenagers?

With TikTok, Instagram, and other platforms using algorithms to send teen viewers addictive, dangerous content—and reaping immense profits—self-regulation has clearly failed.

Apr 2, 2024 / Zephyr Teachout

Olga Ravn’s Novel of Parenting and Its Discontents

Olga Ravn’s Novel of Parenting and Its Discontents Olga Ravn’s Novel of Parenting and Its Discontents

In My Work, the novelist examines the trials and tribulations of being a mother.

Apr 2, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Jess Cotton

Nation Poetry

Aia i hea ka wai o Lahaina?no ka Malu 'Ulu 'o Lele Aia i hea ka wai o Lahaina?"no ka Malu 'Ulu 'o Lele"

Apr 1, 2024 / Poems / Brandy Nālani McDougall, Dana Naone Hall, and No‘u Revilla

Nation Poetry

To Little Black Girls, Risking FlowerA Double Golden Shovel To Little Black Girls, Risking Flower"A Double Golden Shovel"

Mar 29, 2024 / Poems / Patricia Smith

A man fights a losing battle with insomnia by counting sheep, 1940.

A Dispatch From the Land of the “Sleepless” A Dispatch From the Land of the “Sleepless”

A French writer’s memoir of her insomnia tries to understand how central sleep is to cultural and intellectual history.

Mar 28, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Alyse Burnside

Nation Poetry

Remembering a honeymoon hike near Drakes Bay, California, while I cook our dinner at the feet of Colorado's Front Range Remembering a honeymoon hike near Drakes Bay, California, while I cook our dinner at the feet of Colorado's Front Range

Mar 27, 2024 / Poems / Camille T. Dungy

The Many Faces of Viet Thanh Nguyen

The Many Faces of Viet Thanh Nguyen The Many Faces of Viet Thanh Nguyen

The Vietnamese American writer’s leap to the mainstream comes at a moment that demands his anti-colonialist perspective.

Mar 25, 2024 / Feature / Mari Uyehara

“The Ricotta Eaters,” Vincenzo Campi (c.1585). Found in the Collection of Musée des Beaux-Arts, Lyon.

At Mathias Énard’s Table At Mathias Énard’s Table

Set between the 16th and 22nd centuries, The Annual Banquet of the Gravediggers’ Guild is a work of political comedy, fixated on class, climate, food, wine, and the afterlife.

Mar 25, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Dustin Illingworth

Nation Poetry

Walking the Land Walking the Land

Mar 25, 2024 / Poems / Paul Guest

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