Books and Ideas

A demonstration at Rockefeller Center, New York city, 1968

What Are the Lessons of “Roe”? What Are the Lessons of “Roe”?

A new book chronicles the decades-long fight to legalize abortion in the United States.

Apr 4, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Moira Donegan

DeSantis on the War in Ukraine

DeSantis on the War in Ukraine DeSantis on the War in Ukraine

Apr 4, 2023 / Column / Calvin Trillin

Molly Ivins

Reports of the Death of the “Texas Observer” Are Greatly Exaggerated Reports of the Death of the “Texas Observer” Are Greatly Exaggerated

With support from readers, a legendary progressive publication lives to fight another day.

Apr 3, 2023 / Jim Hightower

The Mind-Bending Fiction of Mircea Cărtărescu

The Mind-Bending Fiction of Mircea Cărtărescu The Mind-Bending Fiction of Mircea Cărtărescu

In his postmodern epic Solenoid, the Romanian novelist offers us an extraordinary and baroque elaboration of a subjectivity less than ordinary.

Apr 3, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Will Self

A Portrait of Leonard Cohen as a Young Artist

A Portrait of Leonard Cohen as a Young Artist A Portrait of Leonard Cohen as a Young Artist

A posthumous collection of early fiction, A Ballet of Lepers, chronicles how, in fits and starts, the singer came to understand the art of storytelling.

Mar 30, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Sam Sodomsky

Demonstrators holding a banner that reads “Disability Rights are Human Rights”

Disability Is Always Someone Else’s Problem Disability Is Always Someone Else’s Problem

Why I’m not celebrating Disabilities Awareness Month.

Mar 29, 2023 / Marie Myung-Ok Lee

Christianity’s Place in the Left and the Right

Christianity’s Place in the Left and the Right Christianity’s Place in the Left and the Right

A conversation with historian David Hollinger about the rise of evangelicalism, the decline of mainline Protestantism, and if the country has truly become more secular.

Mar 29, 2023 / Q&A / Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins

Los Angeles's Koreatown, 1992

The Puzzle of Ryan Lee Wong’s Activist Autofiction The Puzzle of Ryan Lee Wong’s Activist Autofiction

In his debut, Which Side Are You On, he examines fractures in the Asian American community through the eyes of a recently radicalized college student.

Mar 28, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Esther Kim

You Can’t Even Tell Who’s Rich Anymore

You Can’t Even Tell Who’s Rich Anymore You Can’t Even Tell Who’s Rich Anymore

Billionaires dress like the guy next door, which elides the fact of our ever-worsening inequality.

Mar 24, 2023 / Kate Wagner

18th-century map of Madagasca

The Hidden Treasures of Pirate Democracy The Hidden Treasures of Pirate Democracy

In his final book, David Graeber looks at an experiment in radical democracy and piratical justice in Madagascar.

Mar 21, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Marcus Rediker

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