In October 2020, 41 years after his mother’s disappearance, Paul Wulff received an unexpected phone call.
Cheri Lucas Rowlands
Cheri has been an editor at Longreads since 2014.
Posted inEditor's Pick
After Two Teen Suicides Last Year, How Will Summit County Address an Ongoing Mental Health Crisis?
“A tragic stretch in April 2020 shone a light on the mental health issues facing the mountain community. With the new school year set to start, area residents are continuing to heal while asking themselves how they can learn from the past.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
There Has Been Blood
“For more than five decades, the Thai palm oil industry has been marred by rampant exploitation, violence, and corporate greed. Thailand is the world’s No. 3 producer of palm oil.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Fugitive and the Chameleon
“Mario’s father had gone by many names. Luis Archuleta. Lawrence Pusateri. The man the son knew as Ramon was just a fraction of his way into what may be one of the longest fugitive runs in U.S. history — a 50-year game of cat-and-mouse that played out across the West, from the streets of Colorado […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
‘This Is Going to Change the World’
“As the new millennium dawned, a mysterious invention from a charismatic millionaire became a viral sensation—then went down in flames. Ever since, I’ve wondered: Was it all my fault?”
Posted inEditor's Pick
Typos, Tricks and Misprints
“Why is English spelling so weird and unpredictable? Don’t blame the mix of languages; look to quirks of timing and technology.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Best Four Years of Your Life?
“My future — the vague, all-consuming ideal we’re taught to live for — felt like a more dominant force in my life than my present.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Strange Persistence of First Languages
“Spurred by my father’s death, I returned to the Czech Republic hoping to reconnect to him. In doing so, I also reconnected with my native tongue, and with parts of my identity that I had long ignored.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
Brownsville, We Have a Problem
“SpaceX’s investment likely does mean a change in economic status and power for Brownsville. But the money and vision of the world’s second-richest man could also upend the culture and values that make Brownsville special to its community, a fear that has riven the people of this usually quiet place.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
‘We Are All Suffering in Silence’ — Inside the US Military’s Pervasive Culture of Eating Disorders
U.S. military service members develop harmful and unhealthy habits to maintain “body composition standards” that are outdated.