Biography

Mankind Is a Piece of Shit: On Keiron Pim’s “Endless Flight”
Luke Warde reviews Keiron Pim’s new biography “Endless Flight: The Life of Joseph Roth.”...
Luke WardeDec 24, 2022
- Biography
- Fiction
Examining Phillis Wheatley
Hollis Robbins examines the legend of Phillis Wheatley, the first African American published poet....
Hollis RobbinsDec 19, 2022
- Biography
- Poetry
The Many Faces of Felix Frankfurter: On Brad Snyder’s “Democratic Justice”
Paul Finkelman reviews Brad Snyder's "Democratic Justice: Felix Frankfurter, the Supreme Court, and the Making of the Liberal Establishment."...
Paul FinkelmanDec 13, 2022
Hurt Just the Right Way: A Conversation with Emi Nietfeld
Natasia Pelowski speaks with Emi Nietfeld about her new memoir, “Acceptance.”...
Natasia PelowskiDec 13, 2022
- Biography
- Memoir
Beyond Liberalism?: On Raymond Geuss’s “Not Thinking Like a Liberal”
Richard Eldridge reviews Raymond Geuss’s “Not Thinking Like a Liberal.”...
Richard EldridgeDec 11, 2022
A Communion of Pathless Solitudes: On Adam Nicolson’s “The Making of Poetry”
Joshua Hren reviews Adam Nicolson’s “The Making of Poetry: Coleridge, the Wordsworths, and Their Year of Marvels.”...
Joshua HrenDec 11, 2022
- Biography
- Poetry
A Down-and-Out but Amusing Character: On Alex Harvey’s “Song Noir”
Dec Ryan reviews Alex Harvey’s “Song Noir: Tom Waits and the Spirit of Los Angeles.”...
Declan RyanDec 9, 2022
All of the Monsters (In Which I Accuse James Purdy of Throwing My Four-Year-Old Child Down Two Flights of Stairs Using His Powers of Telekinesis): On Michael Snyder’s “James Purdy”
Matthew Stadler recalls his friend James Purdy via Michael Snyder’s new biography of the novelist, playwright, and poet, “James Purdy: Life of a Contrarian Writer.”...
Matthew StadlerDec 3, 2022
- Biography
- Memoir
The Masks of Xi Jinping: On Alfred L. Chan’s “Xi Jinping” and Joseph Torigian’s “Prestige, Manipulation, and Coercion”
Who is Xi Jinping and what comes after? Martin Laflamme reviews Alfred L. Chan’s biography of Xi Jinping and Joseph Torigian’s study of power struggles in the Soviet Union and the PRC....
Martin LaflammeDec 2, 2022
California, Coming Home: On Julia Scheeres and Allison Gilbert’s “Listen, World!”
Lauren Arrington considers a biography of influential newspaper columnist Elsie Robinson, “Listen, World! How the Intrepid Elsie Robinson Became America’s Most-Read Woman” by Julia Scheeres and Allison Gilbert....
Lauren ArringtonNov 28, 2022
The Truth Was Out There: On the Legacy of Art Bell
Jesse Robertson considers the legacy of insomnia-prone radio host Art Bell....
Jesse RobertsonNov 22, 2022
Private Domain: On Ada Calhoun’s “Also a Poet”
Alec Pollak reviews Ada Calhoun’s ”Also a Poet: Frank O'Hara, My Father, and Me.”...
Alec PollakNov 21, 2022
The Avenging Goddess of Screenwriters: Remembering Mary C. McCall Jr.
J. E. Smyth commemorates a landmark anniversary of forgotten screenwriter and guild president, the sharp-tongued, blacklisted Mary McCall....
J. E. SmythNov 18, 2022
The Legacy of a Caged Bird: On Gene Andrew Jarrett’s “Paul Laurence Dunbar”
Vesper North considers Gene Andrew Jarrett’s updated biography, “Paul Laurence Dunbar: The Life and Times of a Caged Bird.”...
Vesper NorthNov 17, 2022
All That Really Happens Happens to Me: On Annie Ernaux’s “Getting Lost”
Kaya Genç surveys the work of Annie Ernaux via her memoir “Getting Lost,” translated by Alison L. Strayer....
Kaya GençOct 10, 2022
Robert Houston: “A Photographer Who Shot from the Heart”
Patrick A. Howell scans the legacy of the great African American photographer Robert Houston....
Patrick A. HowellOct 8, 2022
Epistolary Sisterhood: On “The Letters of Rosemary and Bernadette Mayer 1976–1980”
Rose Higham-Stainton pores over “The Letters of Rosemary and Bernadette Mayer 1976–1980.”...
Rose Higham-StaintonOct 7, 2022
Which Way the NAACP: On A. J. Baime’s “White Lies” and Tomiko Brown-Nagin’s “Civil Rights Queen”
Randal Jelks considers two books about underappreciated Civil Rights figures, A. J. Baime’s “White Lies: The Double Life of Walter F. White and America’s Darkest Secret” and Tomiko Brown-Nagin’s “ Civil Rights Queen: Constance Baker Motley and the Struggle for Equality.”...
Randal Maurice JelksSep 29, 2022
The Muse as Creator: On Mark Braude’s “Kiki Man Ray”
Justin Tyler Clark reviews Mark Braude’s new biography “Kiki Man Ray: Art, Love, and Rivalry in 1920s Paris.”...
Justin Tyler ClarkSep 20, 2022
Modernism’s Midlife Crisis: On Justin Beal’s “Sandfuture”
Travis Diehl on Justin Beal’s biography-cum-memoir, “Sandfuture.”...
Travis DiehlSep 16, 2022
Askew from the Nation: Thinking About Home and Country with Chinua Achebe and James Baldwin
Abena Ampofoa Asare on the diasporic wanderings — and singular meeting — of James Baldwin and Chinua Achebe....
Abena Ampofoa AsareAug 10, 2022
- Biography
- Translation
Hip-Hop Gods: On Two New Biographies of Major Rap DJs
Craig Lindsey reviews two new biographies of major rap DJs by Dan Charnas and Lance Scott Walker....
Craig LindseyAug 10, 2022
- Biography
- Music
Victim of His Own Celebrity: On Richard Schickel’s “The Famous Mr. Fairbanks”
Chris Yogerst reviews Richard Schickel’s “The Famous Mr. Fairbanks: A Story of Celebrity.”...
Chris YogerstAug 7, 2022
“Cats Are Indescribably Wonderful, Shostakovich’s Fugues Less So”: On Elizabeth Wilson’s “Playing with Fire: The Story of Maria Yudina, Pianist in Stalin’s Russia”
Tim Riley reviews Elizabeth Wilson’s new biography “Playing with Fire: The Story of Maria Yudina, Pianist in Stalin’s Russia.”...
Tim RileyAug 4, 2022
- Biography
- Music