History

"Hegel was right when he said that we learn from history that man can never learn anything from history." — George Bernard Shaw

Egyptian Factories, Sichuan Schools, and the Unfilled Promises of Globalization
Adam Minter reviews Leslie Chang’s “Egyptian Made” and Peter Hessler’s “Other Rivers.”
Adam MinterJul 31, 2024
Ill Fares the Land
Spencer Weinreich reviews Robin Bernstein’s “Freeman’s Challenge: The Murder That Shook America’s Original Prison for Profit.”
Spencer J. WeinreichJul 29, 2024
- History
- Cultural Studies
Chinese Production, American Consumption
Kate Merkel-Hess explores the convergence of economy and politics in the Sino-US relationship via Jonathan Chatwin’s “The Southern Tour” and Elizabeth O’Brien Ingleson’s “Made in China.”
Kate Merkel-HessJul 28, 2024
- History
- Nonfiction
The All-Too-Human Flesh of It
A look at the South’s racial bias is not completely free of bias itself, says Bill Thompson, reviewing Pete Candler’s “A Deeper South.”
Bill ThompsonJul 26, 2024
To Write as They Played
Sarah Moorhouse reviews Susan Tomes’s new collective biography, “Women and the Piano: A History in 50 Lives.”
Sarah MoorhouseJul 24, 2024
- History
- Gender & Sexuality
The “Correlation” Between Statistics and Eugenics
In the second essay of the Legacies of Eugenics series, Aubrey Clayton excavates the troubling correlation between the birth of statistical methods and the history of eugenics.
Aubrey ClaytonJul 18, 2024
The “Empty” Is Always Already Inhabited
Elvia Wilk interviews Jennifer Kabat about her new book, “The Eighth Moon: A Memoir of Belonging and Rebellion.”
Elvia WilkJul 18, 2024
Poor Reading, Weak Theory: An Excerpt from “The Amateur”
LARB presents an excerpt from Saikat Majumdar’s “The Amateur: Self-Making and the Humanities in the Postcolony.”
Saikat MajumdarJul 9, 2024
“Chinatown” at 50, or Seeing Oil Through Cinema
Michael Rubenstein writes on the 50th anniversary of “Chinatown” and the beginning of the end of petromodernity.
Michael RubensteinJul 8, 2024
An Unforgettable Miscarriage of Justice
Laurie Levenson reviews Ronald Collins’s “Tragedy on Trial: The Story of the Infamous Emmett Till Murder Trial.”
Laurie L. LevensonJul 7, 2024
The Lie of the Land: June Fourth, Censorship, and “On the Edge”
Thomas Chen reviews Margaret Hillenbrand’s “On the Edge: Feeling Precarious in China.”
Thomas ChenJul 6, 2024
- Cultural Studies
- History
What’s Left of Originalism? On Jack M. Balkin’s “Memory and Authority”
Andrew Koppelman critiques Jack Balkin’s ”Memory and Authority.”
Andrew KoppelmanJun 28, 2024