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The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week, we’re sharing stories from Tiffany Stanley, Raj Telhan, Alex Pareene, Nico Muhly, and Chris Heath.
Let Me Show You the World
Almost everything you think you know about Aladdin is wrong.
Tea, Biscuits, and Empire: The Long Con of Britishness
The soft-focus Britain of Downton Abbey bears little resemblance to the real Britain collapsing under the weight of racism, austerity, and COVID-19. As Brexit plods on, it’s time for an honest reckoning of the history and future of this outsize little island.
Through a Glass, Tearfully
Maureen Stanton contemplates her history of crying in inappropriate moments, and considers tears from gender-based and political perspectives.
It’s Like That: The Makings of a Hip-Hop Writer
Hip-hop was a different kind of music that needed a different kind of writer to cover it. This is how Michael A. Gonzales came of age in a time when Black writers began breaking the white ceiling.
The Artificial Intelligence of the Public Intellectual
Today’s public intellectuals have their own version of the American Dream, where one person, on their own, can achieve anything — including being the smartest person in the room.
The Occupation of a Woman Writer
Our inherited biases about who should write what live deeper than most of us realize or want to acknowledge.
Vacating Convictions from Crooked Chicago Cops
A group of Chicago cops spent years framing innocent men, but thanks to one determined woman, their convictions are finally getting overturned.
The Enduring Myth of a Lost Live Iggy and the Stooges Album
In 1973, Columbia Records professionally recorded the infamous band for a planned concert record. Columbia never released it. Maybe they never recorded it.

