Cultural Criticism and Analysis

Colin Kaepernick, the Virginia Elections, and the Canary in the Coal Mine

Colin Kaepernick, the Virginia Elections, and the Canary in the Coal Mine Colin Kaepernick, the Virginia Elections, and the Canary in the Coal Mine

The recent controversy sparked by his Netflix special’s depiction of slavery and the NFL is a microcosm of the political battles defining our country.

Nov 3, 2021 / Dave Zirin

The Strange State of the Novel in the “Age of Amazon”

The Strange State of the Novel in the “Age of Amazon” The Strange State of the Novel in the “Age of Amazon”

A conversation with Mark McGurl about how the company changed the way books are written and the consequences of a service oriented reading culture.

Oct 28, 2021 / Q&A / Hannah Gold

John Keats’s Politics of Pain and Renewal

John Keats’s Politics of Pain and Renewal John Keats’s Politics of Pain and Renewal

Anahid Nersessian offers a radical and unforgettable reading of the British writer’s odes—one that upends our sense of his poetic project.

Oct 21, 2021 / Books & the Arts / David B. Hobbs

Jonathan Franzen’s God

Jonathan Franzen’s God Jonathan Franzen’s God

A multigenerational saga about a Midwestern family, Crossroads is like most of Franzen novels—with one exception: Every plotline leads to the big guy himself.

Oct 18, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Rumaan Alam

The Unsure State of Asian America

The Unsure State of Asian America The Unsure State of Asian America

A conversation with Jay Caspian Kang about how the term “Asian American” became “mostly meaningless.”

Oct 13, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Rosemarie Ho

Eric Williams and the Tangled History of Capitalism and Slavery

Eric Williams and the Tangled History of Capitalism and Slavery Eric Williams and the Tangled History of Capitalism and Slavery

The historian and politician helped transform how several generations understood 18th- and 19th-century history.

Oct 5, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Gerald Horne

Sally Rooney’s Fiction for End Times

Sally Rooney’s Fiction for End Times Sally Rooney’s Fiction for End Times

In her third novel, Rooney does more than just respond to critics; she surveys the wreckage of modern life.

Oct 4, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Tony Tulathimutte

Desire in Our Times: A Conversation With Amia Srinivasan

Desire in Our Times: A Conversation With Amia Srinivasan Desire in Our Times: A Conversation With Amia Srinivasan

An interview with the philosopher about her new book, The Right to Sex, the need for more internationalist feminism, the politics of consent, and much more.

Sep 30, 2021 / Q&A / Nawal Arjini

Fresco by an anonymous painter depicting 'The Triumph of Death'

A Novel Caught Between 2 Plagues A Novel Caught Between 2 Plagues

Looking at both the AIDS crisis and the Covid pandemic, Kate Zambreno’s To Write as if Already Dead grapples with how illness changes our conception of self.

Sep 29, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Jamie Hood

David Graeber and David Wengrow’s Anarchist History of Humanity

David Graeber and David Wengrow’s Anarchist History of Humanity David Graeber and David Wengrow’s Anarchist History of Humanity

In The Dawn of Everything, Graeber and Wengrow offer a sweeping and ambitious exploration of life without the state.

Sep 20, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Daniel Immerwahr

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