Books and Ideas

Nation Poetry

from Earth’s Last Word (A superstitious poem) from "Earth’s Last Word (A superstitious poem)"

Jan 29, 2024 / Poems / Valerie Hsiung

Palestinians carry some belongings as they flee Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on January 26, 2024

Letters From the Apocalypse Letters From the Apocalypse

Palestinian writers George Abraham and Sarah Aziza were in the middle of an ongoing correspondence. Then came October 7.

Jan 29, 2024 / George Abraham and Sarah Aziza

Isabella Hammad’s Novel of Art and Exile in Palestine

Isabella Hammad’s Novel of Art and Exile in Palestine Isabella Hammad’s Novel of Art and Exile in Palestine

Enter the Ghost looks at a group of Palestinians who try to put on a production of Hamlet in the occupied West Bank. 

Jan 25, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Raja Shehadeh

When Her Neighbors Began Dying, the World Looked Away

When Her Neighbors Began Dying, the World Looked Away When Her Neighbors Began Dying, the World Looked Away

A new podcast takes us back to the early days of the HIV/AIDS crisis, when a mystery virus began spreading among New York’s Black and brown communities.

Jan 25, 2024 / Lizzy Ratner

Heather Cox Richardson and the Battle Over US History

Heather Cox Richardson and the Battle Over US History Heather Cox Richardson and the Battle Over US History

One interpretation presents the country as irredeemably tainted by its past. Another contends that the United States has also tended toward egalitarianism.

Jan 24, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Kim Phillips-Fein

Niels Vodder display wtih furniture designed by Finn Juhl, Cabinetmakers Guild Exhibition, 1949.

How Did Americans Come to Love “Mid-Century Modern”? How Did Americans Come to Love “Mid-Century Modern”?

Solving the riddle of America’s obsession with postwar design and furniture.

Jan 23, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Marianela D’Aprile

Republican presidential candidate and former US president Donald Trump speaks to guest at a cam

Trump and the Courts Trump and the Courts

Jan 23, 2024 / Column / Calvin Trillin

The Blue-Blood Families That Made Fortunes in the Opium Trade

The Blue-Blood Families That Made Fortunes in the Opium Trade The Blue-Blood Families That Made Fortunes in the Opium Trade

Long before the Sacklers appeared on the scene, families like the Astors, the Peabodys, and the Delanos cemented their upper-crust status through the global trade in opium.

Jan 23, 2024 / Feature / Amitav Ghosh

The Brilliant Discontents of Lou Reed

The Brilliant Discontents of Lou Reed The Brilliant Discontents of Lou Reed

A new biography examines the enigma of the musician.

Jan 23, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Sasha Frere-Jones

Nikki Haley talks to a group of people while campaigning in New Hampshire.

Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy Can’t Escape GOP Racism Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy Can’t Escape GOP Racism

The two presidential candidates are boxed in by the bigotry they deny exists.

Jan 19, 2024 / Jeet Heer

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