What Does Paleo Parenting Look Like?
A new book that examines the strange protractedness of human childhood also argues against basing modern parenting practices on our distant ancestors.
Litany for Dictatorships
Published in The Atlantic in 1935
The Year I Tore Through Annie Ernaux’s Books
Reading the work of the newly minted Nobel Prize laureate, one novelist discovered the kind of writer she wanted to be.
The Simple Pleasures of Baking
The practice can be a salve for anxiety—or just a cozy way to spend a fall day: Your weekly guide to the best in books
The Unexpected Power of Seeing Yourself as a Villain
If horror-film monsters mirror society’s deepest anxieties, embracing them draws attention to who or what is deemed worthy of fear.
Why Putin Made Peace With the Soviets’ Archenemies
Revisiting Russia’s brutal civil war
Five Authors We Thought Might Win the Nobel—Including One Who Did
A reading list of works by perennial favorites, including this year's awardee, Annie Ernaux
The Toll of Hiding One’s True Self
In his new memoir, Seán Hewitt describes coming out of the closet—only to build another one for himself.
While Playing Hamlet at the National Theatre, Daniel Day-Lewis Leaves the Stage, Having Seen the Ghost of His Own Father
A poem for Sunday
The Books We Read Too Late—And That You Should Read Now
One of the great, bittersweet pleasures of life is finishing a title and thinking about how it might have affected you—if only you’d found it sooner.
All the World’s a Scheme
A juicy ruse can elevate a literary plot: Your weekly guide to the best in books
Orhan Pamuk’s Literature of Paranoia
Living in Turkey has made the author a master of the genre.
Ode to King Charles III
A poem for the new monarch
What Did Axios Do?
Don’t read the new book by the outlet’s co-founders. Experience it. Then buy six copies.
The Simple Secret of French Baking
Master the classics, then improvise.
Madhuri Vijay on Cruelty as Righteousness
“I’m fascinated by cruelty in all its various guises—cruelty as negligence, as sadism, as self-protection, as misguided kindness, as accident, and, increasingly, as righteousness.”
Hill Station
A short story
Who Is Tracy Flick Now?
Tom Perrotta revisits his cult character and looks back on the ’90s feminism that made her.
The Pandemic Novel That’s Frozen in Time
Stories that focus on the minor quirks of daily life can paradoxically help us see societal pain more clearly.
A Novel With a Secret at Its Center
Read Yiyun Li’s new book carefully, and you might glimpse its hidden message.