Archive

The American Girl and the “Boy from Shobrakheit”: On Noor Naga’s “If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English”
Ian Ross Singleton turns his ear to “If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English,” a new novel by Noor Naga.
Ian Ross SingletonJun 22, 2022
- Fiction
The Bad Mexicans of the Mexican Revolution
Ximena Delgado finds much that is good in “Bad Mexicans: Race, Empire & Revolution in the Borderlands” by Kelly Lytle Hernández.
Ximena DelgadoJun 22, 2022
- History
As If It Were True: An Interview with Richard Kearney
Matthew Clemente peels open a conversation with Kearney like the skin of a clementine.
Matthew ClementeJun 21, 2022
- Philosophy & Religion
Medieval Times: On Ottessa Moshfegh’s “Lapvona”
Francesca Billington on the house that Ottessa Moshfegh built.
Francesca BillingtonJun 21, 2022
- Fiction
Out of the Osage Diaspora: On Chelsea T. Hicks’s “A Calm and Normal Heart”
Ruby Hansen Murray connects with “A Calm and Normal Heart,” the debut story collection of Chelsea T. Hicks.
Ruby Hansen MurrayJun 21, 2022
- Fiction
We All Killed Suphi: Strangeness as Possibility in Leylâ Erbil’s “A Strange Woman”
Ralph Hubbell reviews “A Strange Woman,” a novel by Turkish author Leylâ Erbil, translated by Nermin Menemencioğlu and Amy Marie Spangler.
Ralph HubbellJun 21, 2022
- Fiction
Zadie Smith Finds Her Way to Class
Todd Cronan on Zadie Smith’s politics of compassion.
Todd CronanJun 20, 2022
- Memoir & Essay
Tension and Drive: Maya Deren and Gregory Bateson’s Plateau
Vinícius Portella forges the historical and intellectual connection between Maya Deren’s cinema and her reading of Gregory Bateson’s concept of the “plateau.”
Vinícius PortellaJun 20, 2022
- Film
A Critique of Post-Critical Zen: On Bret W. Davis’s “Zen Pathways”
Avram Alpert asks for even more philosophical forks in reviewing Bret W. Davis’s book, “Zen Pathways.”
Avram AlpertJun 19, 2022
- Religion
Debuting During a Pandemic: A Conversation with Coco Reilly
Justin Gautreau talks with Coco Reilly about her self-titled debut album.
Justin GautreauJun 19, 2022
- Music
Segregation, Poverty and Policing: A Shared History
Walter KatzJun 19, 2022
The Meanings of a Good Curry: On Madhushree Ghosh’s “Khabaar: An Immigrant Journey of Food, Memory, and Family”
Rishi Reddi explores Madhushree Ghosh’s treatment of food, language, immigration, and colonialism in “Khabaar.”
Rishi ReddiJun 19, 2022
- Memoir & Essay
Orientalism in Our Code: “The Matrix Resurrections,” Hollywood, and Anti-Asian Violence
The Matrix's final lesson to me, in watching The Matrix Resurrections, is that I can no longer swallow its bitter pill.
Jerrine TanJun 18, 2022
- SF
Reckless Reader: El Taller Bookstore and Café in Lawrence, Massachusetts
Natasha Vhugen introduces the newest member of LARB's Reckless Reader program, El Taller Bookstore and Café in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Natasha VhugenJun 18, 2022
The Pursuit of Property: The Afterlife of an Armenian Charitable Complex in Istanbul
What happens when a prize piece of land in Istanbul is also connected to the Armenian community?
Naomi CohenJun 18, 2022
- Around the World
Nell Zink’s “Avalon”
Nell Zink joins Eric Newman and Kate Wolf to talk about her latest novel, “Avalon.”

LARB Radio HourJun 17, 2022