A Jesuit’s Reluctant, Beautiful Confession
Roberto Bolaño is having a moment. Where better to start than "A Night in Chile," a slim, hypnotic, relentlessly compelling masterpiece.
By Jeannette Cooperman
The Guilty Pleasures of Emily in Paris
I tried to avoid this show. Then I succumbed.
There Is No Place like Home, Whatever That Is
As soon as you can reach high, grab the shiny doorknob, and toddle outside, you see what your homeworld actually looks like. Odds are, it will be the first thing you draw: a box with a triangle on top, two square eyes to let the sunshine in, a tall door to let your friends in. It is your kangaroo pouch, familiar and comforting when the rest of the world is strange.
Time to Rethink the Mississippi Watershed—and Design Itself
“Water is one of the most politicized things on Earth, if not the most,” Hoeferlin notes. “Yet it is apolitical. Water goes where it wants to go. It will find its way.”
Winnie the Pooh Would Have Loved This
If the bees' queen begins to falter, they induce her replacement, as political parties have been known to do. If she dies, the entire colony realizes it can no longer smell her scent, and a “queenless roar” goes up, an agitation that triggers the raising of the next queen.
Flowers Have Mastered the Art of Seduction
The wild and crazy things a flower will do to get laid
The Man Who Saw Missouri’s Beauty
A fresh look at the Katy and Rock Island trails—and the difference they make.
With Relentless Mischief, Life Surprises Us
No matter how tight your friendships, you cannot predict where you will find a burst of empathy and help.
The Curious Importance of the Big Toe
The big toe freed our hands to make art, use tools, carry babies, and write literature. Why do we mock it?
Our Hand-Wringing About the Planet Could Be Hubris
Robinson Jeffers thought even our angst was self-centered. “We must uncenter our minds from ourselves;/ We must unhumanize our views a little.”
The Most Useful, Least Appreciated, Most Stolen Article in the World
Do not underestimate the humble No. 2 pencil.
The Grand Mystery of the Mystery Novel
Why are any of us drawn to twisted or ironic amusements? And if my answer is dark, why would I want to document it? Still, now that I am looking at my predilection straight on, it unsettles me.