Archive

On Excavating the Novel and “Toni Morrison: Sites of Memory”
Jasmine Liu visits Princeton University Library’s exhibition of Toni Morrison’s archive.
Jasmine LiuMay 6, 2023
- Literary Criticism
Claire Dederer’s “Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma”
Medaya Ocher is joined by writer and critic Claire Dederer to discuss Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma.
LARB Radio HourMay 5, 2023
The Artifice of AI: Why Machine-Generated Text Seems So Fake
Jeffrey Binder uses the rise of ChatGPT to explore the backstory of our unease with artifice.
Jeffrey M. BinderMay 5, 2023
- Science & Technology
Carnal Thoughts: On Alice Blackhurst’s “Luxury, Sensation and the Moving Image”
Adèle Cassigneul reviews Alice Blackhurst’s “Luxury, Sensation and the Moving Image,” and, in doing so, interrogates feminist artistic constellations as they are traditionally understood.
Adèle CassigneulMay 4, 2023
- Film
Echoes of Her Ancestors: On Ava Chin’s “Mott Street”
Megan Vered reviews Ava Chin’s “Mott Street: A Chinese American Family’s Story of Exclusion and Homecoming.”
Megan VeredMay 4, 2023
- Memoir & Essay
Cinema in a Little Mirror: The Hays Code and Cultural Dysphoria
Katharine Coldiron looks at the cultural dysphoria caused by the Hays Code in US cinema.
Katharine ColdironMay 3, 2023
- Film
In Search of a Reasonably Clear Conscience: On Paul Woodruff’s “Living Toward Virtue”
Howard J. Curzer reviews Paul Woodruff’s “Living Toward Virtue: Practical Ethics in the Spirit of Socrates.”
Howard J. CurzerMay 3, 2023
- Philosophy & Religion
Vast Silences: On Victor LaValle’s “Lone Women”
John Edward Martin reviews Victor LaValle’s “Lone Women.”
John Edward MartinMay 2, 2023
- SF
No Monuments: On Ian Penman’s “Fassbinder Thousands of Mirrors”
Chris Molnar reviews Ian Penman’s “Fassbinder Thousands of Mirrors.”
Chris MolnarMay 2, 2023
- Nonfiction
Window to the Mind: On Brinsley Samaroo and Eric Williams’s “The Blackest Thing in Slavery Was Not the Black Man”
Devin Leigh evaluates the final work of Caribbean historian Eric Williams, “The Blackest Thing in Slavery Was Not the Black Man: The Last Testament of Eric Williams.”
Devin LeighMay 1, 2023
- History
“Sir, You Do Realize I Am 9-1-1?”: On the Lives and Afterlives of California’s Firefighters
Jaime Lowe reports on the neglect and exploitation coursing through the civilian fire infrastructure revealed after the release of her book “Breathing Fire.”
Jaime LoweMay 1, 2023
- LARB Lit
Lyric Forms for Carceral Justice: On Attica Prison and Celes Tisdale’s “When the Smoke Cleared”
David Sherman reviews “When the Smoke Cleared: Attica Prison Poems and Journal,” edited by Celes Tisdale.
David ShermanApr 30, 2023
- Poetry
Unfettered Misanthropy: On Osamu Dazai’s “The Flowers of Buffoonery”
Terry Nguyen revisits Osamu Dazai through the newly translated “The Flowers of Buffoonery.”
Terry NguyenApr 30, 2023
- Fiction
The Passionate Conversationalist: On Scott Timberg’s “Boom Times for the End of the World”
Joe Donnelly reviews his friend and colleague Scott Timberg’s posthumous collection, “Boom Times for the End of the World.”
Joe DonnellyApr 29, 2023
- Nonfiction
The Author Machine
Matthew Blackwell excavates the analog roots of the digital humanities.
Matthew BlackwellApr 29, 2023
- History
Helen Cammock’s “I Will Keep My Soul”
Kate Wolf is joined by Helen Cammock to discuss her latest exhibit and book, “I Will Keep My Soul.”

LARB Radio HourApr 28, 2023