Diana Nyad, at 62, is coming out of 30 years of retirement to revive a dream: to swim from Florida to Cuba. Nyad is one of the world's best marathon swimmers, an incredibly difficult, lonely sport. Can she do it?
Feelings
Christopher Hitchens, a brilliant but divisive figure on the political and cultural scene, recently died after a long fight against Cancer. Here, the writer Ian McEwan pays tribute to a lost friend.
In this excerpt from Jonathan Franzen’s latest novel, we are introduced to the story’s protagonists, Walter and Patty Burgland. Franzen describes a white, middle class, suburban life pulsing with quiet tension.
The author uses a trip to IKEA to contemplate the place of art within an industrial, capitalist society.
Joan Didion, one of America’s most celebrated essayists, writes of coping with her husband’s death and reflects on the stunning ordinariness out of which comes some of life’s most traumatic events.
Can we know or predict our futures? Do we want to? How does knowing, thinking we know or not knowing them affect our lives?
In a speech to the West Point plebe (freshman) class, the author critiques the way large institutions — corporations, the government, the military — promote mediocre people to leadership roles and presents a vision for what it means to truly lead.
Why are so many American adults obsessed with fitness and health? What are they (we) hoping to gain by going to the gym every day and taking fish oil tablets? The author takes a brilliant hack at the motives of the anti-obesity crowd and goads us to mend our ways or eat more cake and pork rinds.
In a series of short essays, authors think back on bad decisions made in the heat of summer.
The narrator of Motherless Brooklyn, Lionel Essrog, has Tourette Syndrome. This excerpt opens the story as Lionel is on duty for his boss who runs a “seedy, low grade” detective agency. Narrated by Essrog, this novel is a mysterious and compelling detective story that is hard to put down!
Jennifer Egan’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel A Visit From the Goon Squad follows the lives of characters who work in the music industry. This excerpt is about Sasha, a young woman who has an urge to take things that don’t belong to her.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a novel by Jonathan Safran Foer. This excerpt, from the beginning of the book, opens the story of 9-year-old Oskar, whose father died on September 11. Oskar’s unique voice makes his narrative simultaneously funny and sad.
An excerpt from Jeffrey Eugenides’ magnificent novel Middlesex. This is the beginning of the story of Calliope Stephanides. She is the daughter of Greek immigrants who discovers a family secret that has an immense impact on her own life.
Toni Morrison’s Nobel Lecture is a truly remarkable piece of writing. She uses her stirring and poetic style of prose to show the reader the immense impact words have, and lay out her philosophy of what art should be.
A moving, charming, and often funny glimpse into the life of a troubled family. An excerpt of a piece of fiction by Miriam Toews.
This is a beautiful excerpt from Elaine Dundy’s memoir. A witty, thoughtful, and revealing look at what it was like to be a young woman of a certain status in London in the 1960s.
This memoir-style essay, from Michael Chabon’s collection of essays on masculinity in America, describes the story of his relationship with his father-in-law while reflecting on issues of class, immigration, and marriage.
As Christopher Hitchens continues to deal with his disease, he deals with the frustration and trauma of losing his ability to speak well. Here he provides a thoughtful and moving account of how his voice has impacted his career as a writer.
Patti Smith discusses her memoir Just Kids, which recounts her early days an aspiring artist in New York City in the 70s.
Zadie Smith discusses the ways in which one’s identity is expressed, hidden, and altered through multiple voices— from Eliza Doolittle’s to Barack Obama’s to her own.
An Iraqi-American woman confronts the complex predicament of her identity.
An art installation that’s a “clock” made up of film clips for every minute of the day produces profound insights in the author about the way we experience time.
A college Lit professor tells how she took the boredom and busy work out of her classes and turned them into something truly unusual – a fun, useful and enlightening experience for her mostly non-English major students.
In an excerpt from his upcoming book, the author explores Jackie O’s career as an editor in the publishing industry. This facet of her life was, purposely, much less public, but also quite fascinating.
Though painter Larry Rivers has been dead for almost ten years, his popularity, especially among critics, is only increasing. As the article explores his bohemian lifestyle and his artistic legacy, one voice emerges to consistently denounce him both as a person and an artist — his daughter’s.
This article is an absolutely gripping tale of a pilot downed over the Pacific Ocean during World War II. While it doesn’t seem like much could happen during 46 days on a raft at sea, this excerpt from Hillenbrand’s book “Unbroken” is full surprises.
An excerpt from the book “Fragments,” this article delves into Marilyn Monroe’s private journals, poems, and letters. These writings have never been seen before, and reveal a fascinating, dark, and introspective side of this American icon.
In this ongoing series, Hitchens deals with his Cancer diagnosis. In this article, he discusses, with humor and frustration, the excessive, unsolicited, and often off-the-wall advice he is constantly being offered.
Since 1987 Ferran Adria has run the kitchen at the remote El Bulli restaurant, two hours outside of Barcelona. This chef, the leading authority on molecular gastronomy and perhaps the most influential chef of his time, is always blazing a new path, and people come from all over the world to get a taste. So why is he closing?
Saudi Arabia is trying, for the first time, to attract non-Muslim tourists. Maureen Dowd adventures here to find out what it’s like to be an alcohol-loving, work-minded, fun-loving female in a culture widely known for the oppression of its women.
Zach Braff reminisces about Stagedoor Manor, the performing arts sleep-away camp that was also a stop for Natalie Portman, Robert Downey Jr., and Mandy Moore on their roads to fame.
In 2007, the Washington Post conducted an experiment: what would happen if they placed one of the world’s best classical violinists in the D.C. Metro to perform during morning rush hour? Would anyone notice?
On the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, the author visits with a group of people helping to memorialize the disaster. They discuss its implications, repercussions, and how to best serve its memory.
The current trend in Hollywood seems to be overweight comedians. This article applauds the trend in a lighthearted manner.
The author of a forthcoming biography of J.D. Salinger examines Salinger’s time as a soldier in World War II. It seems that Salinger’s experiences in battle shaped him as a writer, and especially influenced his most famous character, Holden Caulfield.
As Hitchen’s continues to deal with his cancer diagnosis, he analyzes the way people around him choose to talk about his illness. He feels there are some basic rules of etiquette people should follow when discussing someone’s disease.
Wow. Must read for fans of “classic” rock but also a time capsule – a very ambitious book review with a take on what it means to live.
In this review, we are introduced to a beautiful book about a beautiful relationship.
Part 2 of Joyce Carol Oates Rashomon in which Janet Maslin takes a hatchet to Oates’ book, her deceased spouse and their marriage.
Deaf and hearing-impaired musicians and composers held a New York City concert recently. How does music by the deaf sound, and how do these musicians know they are playing it “right?”
Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn tackles issues of race in a complex way. Are High Schooler’s ready for it?
In France the ortolan is an endangered bird and a rare delicacy. What happens when the author gets an opportunity to try one?
The writer Christopher Hitchens was recently diagnosed with cancer. How will this hard-partying, outspoken and often oppositional force deal with terminal illness?
Where do our traditional concepts of masculinity and femininity come from? The author traces these terms, and their implications, through history.
Learning to take and give a punch — a literal punch — in a boxing ring — can be an essential part of one’s spiritual development.
When we are young, we feel invincible. Some of us are even inclined to go on adventures and celebrate life by taking big risks…
How did the Islamic cultural center near the World Trade Center site suddenly erupt into a major controversy and what were the intentions of those on both sides of the debate?
A massive, preternaturally positive coach makes no apologies for wearing his heart on his sleeve and promising to win a Super Bowl.