Longreads features

Beyond the Glass

Among a collection’s many skulls, a grieving son learns how to live in a world that keeps going.

Where the Forest Went

Hugh Maxwell’s walk transformed 2.6 million acres of wilderness into a grid for sale. A writer followed his trail to survey what remains.

A Place Among the Fiddlers

In a southwest Virginia fairground, thousands of musicians gather every August to keep a centuries-old tradition from flickering out.

Eating Alone

Soggy fries, ghost kitchens, and a $19 bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich: what we’ve actually gained on the path to convenience.

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Recent editors’ picks

Quest for the Slappy Man-Hug

Lane Michael Stanley | The Offing | October 9, 2026 | 4,404 words

“I’ve been passing as male for six years, and I still have no idea how to do the Slappy Man-Hug.”

Ghosts of the Grove

Ashley Stimpson | Offrange | October 18, 2026 | 2,515 words

“Palmeros are the gutsy, highly skilled farm workers who harvest your medjool dates. Now climate change, immigration raids, and a push for mechanization threaten their 6,000-year-old tradition.”

The Man Who Taught Us How to Pay Attention

A.O. Scott | The New York Times Magazine | October 18, 2026 | 3,020 words

“The works of the British art critic John Berger offer the antidote to our age of infinite scrolling.”

Death by a Thousand Dams

Ben Goldfarb | bioGraphic | September 22, 2026 | 4,373 words

“Tens of thousands of small barriers hamper fish recovery in the northeastern United States.”

Feeding the Revolution

Victoria Blanco | Orion | October 5, 2026 | 3,659 words

“The burrito’s history as a symbol of resistance.”

The Doxing of Jane Doe

Ruby Cramer | The New Yorker | October 14, 2026 | 5,194 words

“The alleged perpetrators in the ‘Cornell Seven’ case were doxed. But so was the victim. And the person who doxed her. And people with no connection to the case at…

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Weekly Top 5

The Top 5 Longreads of the Week

Highlighting stories by Melanie Challenger, Eve Livingston, M.R. O’Connor, Gordon Peake, and Blair Braverman.

The Top 5 Longreads of the Week

Highlighting stories from Dushko Petrovich Córdova, Josh Dzieza, Beryl Gilothwest, Stephanie Uchino-Beach, and Zack Haumptman.

The Top 5 Longreads of the Week

Recommending notable stories from Caitlin Dickerson, Marci Wilding, Tiffany Huang, Nick Paumgarten, and Chabeli Carrazana.

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Learn to Love Your Search Results Again.

Introducing the Longreads Story Recommender.

The Longreads questionnaire

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Excerpts from The Atavist Magazine, our sister publication

The Unforeseen Something

When a little girl in Iowa was diagnosed with a rare incurable disease, her parents and their community came together to help her. They wound up making medical history.

The Thief Who Wanted to Save the World

An ex-cop pulled off the largest armed robbery in Austria’s history, with his friend’s mistress as his accomplice. But he wasn’t trying to get rich. He wanted to be a real-life Robin Hood.

Secrets of the Atomic City

For decades, workers at a nuclear facility in Kentucky were exposed to dangerous levels of radiation. Management assured them nothing was wrong. Then four friends risked everything to reveal the truth.

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Longreads reading lists

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