Books and Ideas

black and white photo of j. robert oppenheimer testifying before the senate

Even as the Oppenheimer Film Rights a Historic Wrong, the Memo That Smeared Him Remains Redacted Even as the Oppenheimer Film Rights a Historic Wrong, the Memo That Smeared Him Remains Redacted

The physicist was punished for opposing development of the hydrogen bomb, and for warning about the dangers of nuclear proliferation.

Jul 21, 2023 / Peter Shinkle

“Bidenomics” vs. “Reaganomics”

“Bidenomics” vs. “Reaganomics” “Bidenomics” vs. “Reaganomics”

What will it take for Biden’s economic agenda to transform the political landscape the way to Reagan’s did?

Jul 21, 2023 / Mike Konczal

Orphans, Girl sewing in a room in an orphanage, Victorian, German 19th Centur

The Problem of the Orphan Plot The Problem of the Orphan Plot

The child welfare system has served as a convenient narrative device for novels, podcasts, and the like. A new book interrogates what we think we know about foster care.

Jul 20, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Emi Nietfeld

Martha Graham performing in 1962.

Martha Graham’s Movement Martha Graham’s Movement

A recent biography dives into the choreographer's role as both an artist and figure of early American modernism.

Jul 19, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Emily Hawk

Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) attends a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee markup on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

Josh Hawley Gets an “F” in American History Josh Hawley Gets an “F” in American History

The senator from Missouri is spreading misinformation about the past in order to put a Christian nationalist spin on the present.

Jul 13, 2023 / John Nichols

Sculpture of the Greek poet Sappho, 1880.

In the Shadow of Sappho In the Shadow of Sappho

Selby Wynn Schwartz’s After Sappho is a unique work of fiction that resembles a group biography on the travails of 20th-century queer feminist artists. 

Jul 13, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Lily Houston Smith

Alison Mills Newman

The Strange Legacy of “Francisco,” a Novel of Black Bohemianism The Strange Legacy of “Francisco,” a Novel of Black Bohemianism

Over the years, Alison Mills Newman has become disillusioned with her work of experimental fiction. Its story is now caught between radical aesthetics and conservative politics.

Jul 12, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Stephen Kearse

Read Banned Books!

Read Banned Books! Read Banned Books!

There is a growing number of books bans across the US.

Jul 11, 2023 / OppArt / Judy Polstra

Chris Christie

Chris Christie Declares Chris Christie Declares

Jul 11, 2023 / Column / Calvin Trillin

“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

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