Books and Ideas

State of the Magazines State of the Magazines

On both sides of the Atlantic, liberal news magazines facing declining circulation have started to play into the celebrity culture. But there are gems that have the power to carry ...

Oct 27, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Victor Navasky

The Uncertainty Principle The Uncertainty Principle

By writing a novel about a conventional novelist writing about a conventional man, J.M. Coetzee's latest work illuminates the role of the novel and cuts through typical and tired t...

Oct 26, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Pankaj Mishra

The War of the Liberals The War of the Liberals

Power and the Idealists clings to the notion that the Iraq War was waged for humanitarian ideals, while At the Point of a Gun documents the inner torment of humanitarian interventi...

Oct 26, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Stephen Holmes

The Two-Way Squeeze The Two-Way Squeeze

The quiet purposefulness that characterized Rosa Parks's actions bears eloquent witness to the power of her protest.

Oct 25, 2005 / Books & the Arts / The Editors

Deadline for Saddam Deadline for Saddam

Saddam Hussein went to trial on Wednesday declaring he was still the president of Iraq. A series of odes a decade ago to Hussein's dictatorial days show the tyrant was always out ...

Oct 24, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Calvin Trillin

The Hidden History of Slavery in New York The Hidden History of Slavery in New York

Those who believe that slavery in America was strictly a "Southern thing" will discover an eye-opening historical record on display at the New-York Historical Society's current exh...

Oct 24, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Adele Oltman

One Possible Scenario One Possible Scenario

One twisted tale of how Harriet Miers's confirmation hearings will unfold.

Oct 20, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Calvin Trillin

Over My Dead Body Over My Dead Body

New biographies of Benito Mussolini and Marilyn Monroe contemplate exploitation of the body--in life and after death.

Oct 19, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Jon Mooallem

How Liberia Held ‘Free’ Elections How Liberia Held ‘Free’ Elections

Votes are now being counted in the first truly free election in Liberia's troubled history. It's a far cry from the 1986 election, which dictatorial Samuel Doe fraudulently "won" b...

Oct 13, 2005 / Feature / Michael Massing

Another Country Another Country

Chronicling the final, devastating months of the Civil War, E.L. Doctorow's new novel, The March, reveals the author's complex love for an earlier version of America.

Oct 12, 2005 / Books & the Arts / Vince Passaro

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