Road Trip at the Borderland
A road trip along the North Korean border, with a Chinese father and his estranged daughter, plastic bags of food, and an 81-year-old grandmother who refuses to wear a seat belt.
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Longreads features
“I Play the Field; I Read Around.”
The Great Circle Author on Her Omnivorous Habits, E-Reader Renaissance, and Unending Search for “The One.”
Charnel Heart
A bone chapel promised to teach me about mortality. It took a life-threatening illness for me to learn.
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.
Making Meaning, One Step at a Time: A Conversation with Earl Swift
Strong pacing and flow gets your reader to the finish line. The author of Up On Cove Mountain explains why they’re so important.
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Weekly Top 5 (for members only)
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Recommendations from Sophie Haigney, Lisa Borst, Duncan Fyfe, Ashley Stimpson, and Lane Michael Stanley.
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Showcasing stories from Arundhati Roy, Michael Hall, Gus Garcia-Roberts, Victoria Blanco, and Ben Goldfarb.
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Highlighting stories by Melanie Challenger, Eve Livingston, M.R. O’Connor, Gordon Peake, and Blair Braverman.
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Learn to Love Your Search Results Again.
Introducing the Longreads Story Recommender.
The Longreads questionnaire
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring Jasper Craven
He wrote the book on how the military shapes masculine identity. He’ll also tell you about Disney adults, Pharaoh Sanders, and his favorite spot for a burger and a negroni.
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring Erika Hayasaki
The award-winning journalist and author of The Reported Essay newsletter on writing, reading, and making connections.
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring Roberto José Andrade Franco
The ESPN writer tells us what feels like home, the best gift he’s ever received, and the Esquire read he can’t stop thinking about.
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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
Lost and Found: A Reading List on Labyrinths, Mazes, and Wayfinding
Lost in a maze or found in a labyrinth? Come, let’s keep walking.
Found Wanting: A Reading List on Measurement
We know that the act of measuring changes what is measured. Might it change us measurers, too?
Here’s the Scoop: A Reading List on Ice Cream
Seven stories that celebrate the surprising influence of a humble dessert.
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