Archive

55 Voices for Democracy: "The Smallest Refusals" by Karen Tongson
Karen Tongson acknowledges that no will come to tell us our democracy is threatened, for the Thomas Mann House series "55 Voices for Democracy."
Karen TongsonOct 13, 2020
Transcending Gravity: The View from Postcolonial Dhaka to Colonies in Space
Reviewing Fred Scharmen’s “Space Settlements,” historian of technology Asif Siddiqi describes how modernist architects have engaged with utopias in space.
Asif SiddiqiOct 12, 2020
- History
- Science & Technology
Reclaimed Histories: On Gabriela Cabezón Cámara’s “The Adventures of China Iron”
A new novel from Argentina offers a postcolonial feminist critique of the gauchesque.
Madison Felman-PanagotacosOct 12, 2020
- Around the World
- Fiction
On “Rioting” and State Violence: A Conversation with AK Thompson
The social theorist and activist AK Thompson discusses the relationship between protest violence and political representation.
Clare O’ConnorOct 12, 2020
- Histories of Violence
- Politics
Sublimely Ugly: On Elena Ferrante’s “The Lying Life of Adults”
Sarah Chihaya on the ugliness of "The Lying Life of Adults" by Elena Ferrante.
Sarah ChihayaOct 12, 2020
- Around the World
- Fiction
Homeland Elegies: Ayad Akhtar on Mourning America
LARB Radio HourOct 11, 2020
Complex, Simple: On Robert Conquest’s “Collected Poems”
Patrick Kurp admires the “Collected Poems” of the renowned historian Robert Conquest, whose verse “ranges from the ribald to the wittily rarefied.”
Patrick KurpOct 11, 2020
- Poetry
“Retreat” and the Sick World
Madeline Lane-McKinley reviews "Retreat: How the Counterculture Invented Wellness," the recently published book by Matthew Ingram.
Madeline Lane-McKinleyOct 11, 2020
- Cultural Studies
- Politics
The Magic of Plot and Catharsis: A Conversation with Smith Henderson and Jon Marc Smith
Ivy Pochoda interviews writers Smith Henderson and Jon Marc Smith about their novel, “Make Them Cry.”
Ivy PochodaOct 11, 2020
- Noir
Notes on Postcards
Jennifer CroftOct 11, 2020
An American Aid Worker in Pyongyang: Andray Abrahamian’s Being in North Korea
For this week's Korea Blog, Andrei Rogatchevski takes a look at Andray Abrahamian’s "Being in North Korea."
Andrei RogatchevskiOct 11, 2020
A Journal of the Plague Decade: On Howard Cruse’s “Wendel”
Paul Morton revisits the late Howard Cruse's groundbreaking comic, "Wendel."
Paul MortonOct 10, 2020
- Comics
- Gender & Sexuality
Murder, Molotov Cocktails, and Burning Police Stations: Black Lives Matter, White Feminism, “Three Billboards,” and Intersectionality
Jerrine Tan on how we read “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” in the present context of Black Lives Matter protests.
Jerrine TanOct 10, 2020
- Film
- Politics
Imperfect Rhetorics: Neurodiversity in YA Literature and Popular Culture
There’s greater representation of neurodiversity in pop culture today, though more visibility doesn’t always mean better visibility.
Jes BattisOct 10, 2020
- Young Adult & Children’s Literature
“Wright-Gate” and Newt’s Ruthless Playbook
The story of how an ethical tussle in Congress during the early 1990s broke American politics for decades.
Amelia PollardOct 9, 2020
- History
- Politics
The Best Bad Things: On Gary Noy’s “Hellacious California!”
A history of Old California has some blind spots but still adds to the conversation about the meaning of the Golden State.
Helen CabreraOct 9, 2020
- History