How Does a Real Person Become a Character?
Two novels take different approaches to bringing the dead back to life.
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Fine Art / Getty The Art Monster Under the Bed
Ella Baxter’s new novel reminds us that mediocrity is far more common than genius.
Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: Getty. The Century-Old Book With a Message for This Season
Thomas Mann’s The Magic Mountain offers a unique antidote to contempt and despair.
Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: Historic Collection / Alamy The Lessons of Aging
Alan Hollinghurst’s and Lore Segal’s later writing takes two different approaches to growing old.
Millennium Images / Gallery Stock When One Animal Changes a Human’s Mind
E. B. White was accustomed to slaughtering pigs, until one stole his heart.
Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: Getty. How to Write About the Trump Years
A new memoir shrewdly captures the upheavals of the past eight years.
Vincent Forstenlechner / Connected Archives Go Ahead, Put Down That Book
There’s no reason to agonize over the titles you don’t finish.
Heritage Art / Getty Why Some #MeToo Fiction Puts Men Center Stage
Mary Gaitskill’s 2019 novella, This Is Pleasure, makes readers consider whether including male voices can help us understand women’s stories.
United Archives / Lämmel / Bridgeman The Hidden Cost of Gardens
What everyday plants can teach us about history
Millennium Images / Gallery Stock Will Publishing’s Diversity Gains Last?
Published works of fiction by nonwhite authors more than doubled from 2019 to 2023—but we may now be seeing a reversal in this trend.
Francis G. Mayer / Corbis / Getty
