The Monthly Digest: August 2019

In July we published a number of reviews and essays that cast a backward glance at important — sometimes celebrated, sometimes unfairly neglected — cultural milestones of the 20th century. Below you will find profiles of the émigré creators of Curious George and the authors of Oreo and Crabcakes, rediscovered masterpieces of African-American literature; essays on the centenary of the founding of Bauhaus and the 50th anniversary of the release of Lindsay Anderson’s film if....; a reassessment of the historical thought of Reinhart Koselleck and the religious and political vision of Dietrich Bonhoeffer; as well as close reads of Dante’s Purgatorio and Varlam Shalamov’s hellish tales of life in the Gulag. — LARB Editorial

How Would Bonhoeffer Vote?
As so many different political camps invoke Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Joel Looper takes a deep dive into the late German theologian's political thought.
Joel LooperJul 31, 2019
- Politics
- Religion
The Parents of Curious George
Margret and H. A. Rey were the reluctant parents of a cartoon ape-child.
Yuliya KomskaJul 29, 2019
- Nonfiction
- Young Adult & Children’s Literature
Bauhaus100.com: Reflections on a National and Global Celebration
Georg Leidenberger considers the legacy of the Bauhaus school on its centenary.
Georg LeidenbergerJul 26, 2019
My Late Lunch with Oliver Sacks
A conversation in Elysium — or, rather, the West Village — with the late Oliver Sacks.
Jay NeugeborenJul 25, 2019
- Memoir & Essay
- Nonfiction
The Great Deflector
Fran Ross’s mind was shrewd and skewering, and perhaps her writings will never sit easy among those who look for programmatic answers.
Scott SaulJul 22, 2019
- Biography & Autobiography
- Fiction
How Far and How Fast We Have Come: On “The NASA Archives: 60 Years in Space”
M. G. Lord recalls the US Moon landing through Piers Bizony’s “The NASA Archives: 60 Years in Space.”
M. G. LordJul 20, 2019
- Art & Architecture
- Science & Technology
The Forced Conversion of Varlam Shalamov
Anastasiya Osipova argues that the translators of “Kolyma Stories” by Varlam Shalamov have often obscured the author’s literary and political intent.
Anastasiya OsipovaJul 11, 2019
Historia Magistra Vitae: On Reinhart Koselleck’s Vision of History
Joshua Milstein excavates “Sediments of Time: On Possible Histories” by Reinhart Koselleck, translated by Sean Franzel and Stefan-Ludwig Hoffmann.
Joshua MilsteinJul 10, 2019
“I Don’t Really Care. Do You?”: Scientists in the Grey Zone in 1930s Italy
Massimo Mazzotti reflects on how Italian scientists failed as a bulwark against fascist politics in the 1930s.
Massimo MazzottiJul 8, 2019
Dante’s Psychological Comedy
D. M. Black finds psychological depth in Dante’s “Comedy” and shares excerpts from his translation of “Purgatorio.”
D. M. BlackJul 7, 2019
Before Ta-Nehisi Coates: On James Alan McPherson’s “Crabcakes”
Anya Ventura revisits "Crabcakes," the 1998 memoir by the late James Alan McPherson.
Anya VenturaJul 4, 2019
- Memoir & Essay
“A Bullet in the Right Place”: On the 50th Anniversary of Lindsay Anderson’s “if....”
Alex Harvey revisits Lindsay Anderson’s groundbreaking film “if....” 50 years after its premiere.
Alex HarveyJul 2, 2019
- Film