“The UN gave up trying to count the war’s death toll in 2016, when it had already reached nearly half a million. More than 10m Syrians are refugees.”
Search results
Longreads Best of 2022: All of Our No. 1 Story Picks
All the stories we’ve selected as number one in our weekly Top 5 newsletter.
Under the Knife
Margot Harris grapples with guilt following a labiaplasty procedure.
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week, read stories by Mark MacKinnon, Rachel Cusk, Carmen Maria Machado, Suketu Mehta, and an excerpt from Bill Hayes.
The Graffiti Kids Who Sparked the Syrian War
Mark MacKinnon tells the story of Naief Abazid — who, at the urging of some older boys, graffitied a school wall on a lark in Daraa, Syria, at age 14. The “writing on the wall” enraged Syria’s Baathist dictatorship, and became the source of ignition in the Syrian war — a conflict now nearly six […]
Longreads Best of 2017: All of Our No. 1 Story Picks
Here’s every story that was chosen as No. 1 in our weekly Top 5 email.
Six Years Later, Over 400,000 Dead: The Graffiti Kids Who Sparked the Syrian War
Mark MacKinnon tells the story of Naief Abazid — who, at the urging of some older boys, graffitied a school wall on a lark in Daraa, Syria, at age 14. The “writing on the wall” enraged Syria’s Baathist dictatorship, and became the source of ignition in the Syrian war.
Appetite of Abundance: On the Benefits of Being Eaten
J.B. MacKinnon | Orion | July 2013 | 12 minutes (2,875 words) Our latest Longreads Member Pick comes from Orion magazine and J.B. MacKinnon, author of The Once and Future World. Thanks to Orion and MacKinnon for sharing it with the Longreads community. They’re also offering a free trial subscription here. * * *
Appetite of Abundance: On the Benefits of Being Eaten
J.B. MacKinnon | Orion | July 2013 | 12 minutes (2,875 words) Our latest Longreads Member Pick comes from Orion magazine and J.B. MacKinnon, author of The Once and Future World. Thanks to Orion and MacKinnon for sharing it with the Longreads community. They’re also offering a free trial subscription here. * * *

