A Family Matter

The story of a Californian family torn apart by a child protective services agency, and the law firm helping them fight back.

Source: The Atavist
Published: Aug 18, 2016
Length: 40 minutes (10,110 words)

Sunk

A Chinese billionaire’s dream of becoming the next Steven Spielberg results in a big budget movie fiasco.

Source: The Atavist
Published: May 27, 2016
Length: 50 minutes (12,528 words)

Whatsoever Things Are True

A Chicago man is convicted and sentenced to death for a double murder that occurred in 1982. Years later, a journalism school teacher and his students work to free him, and in 1999 another man confesses to the crime, but later recants. Shaer walks us through a very complex story of how a broken system failed for decades to render justice in a 33-year-old crime.

Source: The Atavist
Published: Sep 8, 2015
Length: 61 minutes (15,311 words)

The Ghosts of Pickering Trail

How do you quantify the lost value of houses in which violent crimes have been committed? A family discovers an answer with the help of a real estate expert who specializes in appraising stigmatized property.

Source: The Atavist
Published: Aug 11, 2015
Length: 39 minutes (9,761 words)

The Bones of Marianna, by David Kushner: Our Latest Longreads Member Pick

This week’s Longreads Member Pick is by David Kushner, a contributing editor for Rolling Stone whose work has been featured on Longreads often in the past. He has just published The Bones of Marianna, a new story from The Atavist, and we’re thrilled to give the ebook to Longreads Members.

Source: The Atavist
Published: Oct 31, 2013

Excerpt: The Hollywood Producer Who Survived Catastrophe

This is a Hollywood story, and it starts simply: A car drives through the streets of Los Angeles. It is March 2, 1994, and behind the wheel sits a man who has found a level of success that eludes the desperate majority here. Simon Lewis is a film producer and, at 35, an accomplished one. His is not a household name, but it is becoming an industry one. He makes light stuff mostly, and brings it in on time.

Source: The Atavist
Published: Aug 26, 2011
Length: 6 minutes (1,660 words)