All Essays

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  Still Got It

  Zach Gibson meditates on “late style” in the work of postmodernists like Thomas Pynchon who are still publishing well into their eighties.

  Zach GibsonDec 14

  • Fiction

  • Literary Criticism

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  An Apocalypse for Every Epoch

  Emmett Rensin writes on eco-grief, the climate dirge, and one Armenian monk in a new hybrid fiction-cum-essay from LARB Quarterly no. 47, “Security.”

  Emmett RensinDec 13

  • LARB Lit

  • Fiction

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  Filthy Matters

  Calvin Gimpelevich writes on the history and politics of public bathrooms, in this essay from LARB Quarterly no. 47, “Security.”

  Calvin GimpelevichDec 9

  • LARB Lit

  • History

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  A Fierce and Complicated Compassion

  Alix Christie considers Susan Straight’s challenging yet crucial portraits of an “overlooked” California.

  Alix ChristieDec 9

  • Fiction

  • Memoir & Essay

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  Freeing the Library

  Aaron Boehmer writes about community libraries and the importance of accessible archival and literary resources in these times.

  Aaron BoehmerDec 5

  • Politics

  • Cultural Studies

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  Letter to the Editor Regarding Victoria Dailey’s “Los Angeles in Black and White”

  Johanna Drucker responds to Victoria Dailey’s review of the catalogue raisonné “Paul Landacre: California Hills, Hollywood, and the World Beyond.”

  Johanna Drucker Dec 3

  • Art & Architecture

  • History

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  People of the World: Relax!

  “People of the World: Relax!” is excerpted from “The Complete C Comics,” a collection of Joe Brainard’s innovative work, and featured in LARB Quarterly no. 47: “Security.”

  Joe BrainardDec 2

  • LARB Lit

  • Comics

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  Still Not Geriatric: Archiving a Teenage Riot Grrrl Band

  Martin Wong catches up with SoCal punk band Emily’s Sassy Lime upon their reunion for the California Biennial.

  Martin WongNov 30

  • Art & Architecture

  • Music

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  And Then What? The Road After “Success” in the Arts

  Alexis Clements uses Alison Bechdel’s new graphic novel “Spent” to meditate on the predicament of the creative artist today.

  Alexis ClementsNov 29

  • Comics

  • Art & Architecture

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  Don’t Close Your Teeth

  Cynthia Zarin traces the rise of fascism through the diary entries of Virginia Woolf, in an essay from LARB Quarterly no. 47: “Security.”

  Cynthia ZarinNov 17

  • LARB Lit

  • Literary Criticism

  • Politics

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  Nothing Ever Happens: “Mister Squishy” and the Year of the Sentence Diagram

  Hannah Smart writes about her attempt to diagram a 900-word sentence in David Foster Wallace’s “Mister Squishy,” and what the efforts taught her about human inertia and meaningless language.

  Hannah SmartNov 15

  • Fiction

  • Literary Criticism

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   Springtime for Springnuts

  Grant Sharples offers a personal account of the Boss’s career and legacy in light of the new biopic “Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere.”

  Grant SharplesNov 11

  • Film

  • Music

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  The Secessionists of Shasta County

  Nevin Kallepalli investigates political resentment in rural California, in an essay from LARB Quarterly no. 47: “Security.”

  Nevin KallepalliNov 10

  • LARB Lit

  • Politics

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  Very Fine People: Charlottesville, Eight Years Later

  Aniko Bodroghkozy considers recent books on the 2017 Charlottesville attack as a watershed moment in contemporary neo-Nazism.

  Aniko BodroghkozyNov 4

  • Politics

  • History

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  Archive, Appendix, Hoodie, Home

  Lana Lin dissects the literary and bodily significance of the appendix.

  Lana Lin Nov 1

  • Memoir & Essay

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  Literature Is Not a Vibe: On ChatGPT and the Humanities

  Rachele Dini discusses OpenAI’s “A Machine-Shaped Hand” and an academic sector in crisis.

  Rachele DiniOct 31

  • SF

  • Science & Technology