Essays Archive | Los Angeles Review of Books

All Essays

We Don’t Have Any Reserves
Adam Morgan writes on the impact of Trump’s coup at the NEA for small publishers and literary magazines.
Adam MorganMay 16
- Politics
- Art & Architecture
AI Nightmares: Rise of the Dead Souls
Michael Berry sees warning signs of the creep of AI into education and translation work.
Michael Berry May 16
- Science & Technology
- Education
Avenging Angels
Travis Alexander considers what Billy Wilder’s “Double Indemnity” can teach us about Luigi Mangione and the insurance crisis.
Travis AlexanderMay 15
Saving the NEH
Dr. Norrell Edwards considers the Trump administration’s termination of National Endowment for the Humanities grants.
Norrell EdwardsMay 13
- Education
- Politics
A Certain Reputation It Cannot Be Denied
Victoria Horrocks re-remembers Vanessa Bell.
Victoria HorrocksMay 11
- Art & Architecture
- Biography & Autobiography
Rising from Her Verses
In a preview from LARB Quarterly no. 44, “Pressure,” Sophia Stewart explores the poetry and politics of Julia de Burgos.
Sophia StewartMay 11
Trumpian “Common Sense” and the History of IQ Tests
In the eighth essay of the Legacies of Eugenics series, Pepper Stetler explores the troubling history of IQ tests and special education.
Pepper StetlerMay 8
The Paradox of the Second Person
Nathan Wainstein reexamines Naughty Dog’s 2020 game “The Last of Us Part II.”
Nathan WainsteinMay 4
- SF
A Total Assault on the University
James Chandler argues that claims of combating antisemitism are a bogus rationale for the Trump administration’s ongoing assault on universities, from 2017 to the present.
James ChandlerMay 4
- Education
- Politics
The World of Yesterday, Today
Tim Brinkhof considers the relevance of Stefan Zweig’s 1942 autobiography for our own authoritarian times.
Tim BrinkhofApr 29
- History
- Politics
Reading Behind Bars, and Beyond Barriers
Jackie Snow reflects on what working for a books-to-prisons nonprofit has taught her about reading.
Jackie SnowApr 29
- Law
- Memoir & Essay
Savage Meritocracies
Alix Ohlin revisits Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel “Never Let Me Go” on the occasion of its 20th anniversary.
Alix OhlinApr 28
Perfect Momentum
In a preview from LARB Quarterly no. 44, “Pressure,” Dorie Chevlen learns how to crash someone else’s car.
Dorie ChevlenApr 28
- LARB Lit
- Memoir & Essay
The Isaiah of the Butterflies
In this new installment of an ongoing series, LARB founder Tom Lutz reflects on the “King of the Greenwich Village Bohemians,” Maxwell Bodenheim, and the significance of the year 1925.
Tom LutzApr 25
- Literary Criticism
- History
Stanisław Lem’s Jewish Paradoxes
Marat Grinberg considers Stanisław Lem as a Jewish writer.
Marat GrinbergApr 24
- SF
Jorrell Watkins’s “Still, my brother’s flag flies”
The LARB Quarterly no. 44, “Pressure,” presents a new poem by Jorrell Watkins.
Jorrell WatkinsApr 19
- LARB Lit
- Poetry