I Hate Didactic Novels. Here’s Why This One Works.
Richard Powers’s recent novels have traded complexity for preachiness, but his latest is an effective twist on AI panic.
A Radical Vision of the Sick Body
A Nobel Prize–winning author and her ex-lover explore the surprising vitality of a grave illness.
Han Kang’s Transgressive Art
The author, who has never shied away from criticizing Korean culture, has also given South Korea its first Nobel Prize in Literature.
Scent of a Man
In a new memoir, Al Pacino promises to reveal the person behind the actor. But is he holding something back?
The Lessons of Aging
Alan Hollinghurst’s and Lore Segal’s later writing takes two different approaches to growing old.
This Time, Bob Woodward Gets It Right
The Watergate journalist has taken a lot of hits—including from me. In his new Biden chronicle, War, he’s at his best.
How Lore Segal Saw the World in a Nutshell
Whether in novels or her long-running book group, the émigré author, who died this week at 96, was driven by empathy above all.
Melania Really Doesn’t Care
Her new memoir is a master class in how selective attention and empathy can insulate someone from the pains that trouble the rest of us.
The Woman Who Would Be Steinbeck
John Steinbeck beat Sanora Babb to the great American Dust Bowl novel—using her field notes. What do we owe her today?
Six Books That Feel Like Watching a Movie
Writing can share the thrill of movies by dissolving the physical limitations of the page.
Alan Hollinghurst’s Lost England
In his new novel, the present isn’t much better than the past—and it’s a lot less sexy.
In Defense of Marital Secrets
Lauren Elkin’s Scaffolding suggests that total honesty can take a relationship only so far.
When a Friendship Changes Forever
Lauren Groff captures the precise moment when someone realizes their memories are theirs alone.
A Naked Desperation to Be Seen
In books about the aftermath of October 7, Israelis and Palestinians seek recognition for their humanity.
Expat Elegy
A poem for Sunday
The Knausgaard Book That Deserves More Attention
The author’s exploration of the art of Edvard Munch is moving and worthwhile.
You Are Going to Die
Oliver Burkeman has become an unlikely self-help guru by reminding everyone of their mortality.
Yuval Noah Harari Wants to Reclaim Zionism
Around the anniversary of October 7, a conversation about Israel, pain, and peace with the author of Sapiens
The Enlightenment Is Just One Side of the Story
In her latest novel, Olga Tokarczuk champions a world governed by myth, not reason.
Mutation: Factor V
A poem for Wednesday