Richard Wagner’s Pandemonium Richard Wagner’s Pandemonium
The contested life and afterlife of the composer.
May 18, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Mina Tavakoli
Why Do We Eat Bad Food? Why Do We Eat Bad Food?
Mark Bittman’s new history looks at the economy and politics of junk food.
May 18, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Bill McKibben
The City That Embodies the United States’ Contradictions The City That Embodies the United States’ Contradictions
In the history of St. Louis, we find both a radical and reactionary past—and a more hopeful future too.
May 17, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Robert Greene II
The Entwined History of Freedom and Racism The Entwined History of Freedom and Racism
In White Freedom, historian Tyler Stovall examines how liberty for some has always entailed a lack of liberty for many others.
May 3, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Olúfémi O. Táíwò
The Craft of John Edgar Wideman The Craft of John Edgar Wideman
A conversation with one of the greatest living Black American writers on work, life, and why good fiction is like a game of basketball.
Apr 26, 2021 / Q&A / Elias Rodriques
Marx for Our Times Marx for Our Times
A new book explores the social democratic impulses and Jewish origins of Karl Marx.
Apr 19, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Bruce Robbins
Are We Living in an Age of Strongmen? Are We Living in an Age of Strongmen?
A new book by Ruth Ben-Ghiat discusses the past and present challenges posed by authoritarianism, but misses the social and economic conditions in which it arises.
Apr 6, 2021 / Books & the Arts / David A. Bell
Gogol’s Bullshit Jobs Gogol’s Bullshit Jobs
His biting satires of Russian bureaucracy examined the random cruelty and arbitrary hierarchy of an empire in crisis.
Apr 5, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Jennifer Wilson
The Night the Nazis Came to Murder My Grandfather The Night the Nazis Came to Murder My Grandfather
John Heartfield was a lifelong foe of fascism who used his art as a weapon—and whose devastating portrayals of Hitler, Goering, and Mussolini nearly cost him his life.
Mar 26, 2021 / Feature / John J Heartfield and Lance Hansen
Ami Ayalon’s Political Journey Ami Ayalon’s Political Journey
In Friendly Fire, the former Shin Bet director offers two narratives—one of the story that Israel tells the world, the other of the story Israel tries not to tell the world.
Mar 23, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Raja Shehadeh