Caitlin Flanagan goes on a road trip through California — including Sacramento, Berkeley, and Malibu — visiting the homes of the late Joan Didion and exploring why her writing has had such a powerful effect on people. Slouching Towards Bethlehem and The White Album created a new vocabulary of essay writing, one whose influence is […]
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Posted inEditor's Pick
There are Trees in the Future, Or, A Case for Staying
“What is a city without its people, its history, its intimate relationships, its land and public spaces? If every place becomes any place, what difference does it make?”
Posted inTop 5
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Reads from Zefyr Lisowski, David Gessner, Susie Cagle, Brendan I. Koerner, and Athena Aktipis and Coltan Scrivner.
Posted inFeature
There’s Gold in the Hills
In the wide, quiet spaces of BLM land, I heard echoes of a past we’ve buried—and a future we still might save.
Posted inCuration
Earth Day Reads: A Longreads Collection on the Environment, Climate Change & Conservation
This April 22, dive into these thoughtful essays, reading lists, and recommended reads on the climate crisis, wildfires, and water management.
Posted inTop 5
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Notable stories on chasing manhood, naming Gaza’s dead, searching the stacks for a rare book, leaving music behind, and opting out.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Dislodged
In this beautiful personal essay, Josh McColough recounts a road trip with his daughter along the coast of California and makes poignant observations about humanity and our vulnerable environment. Still, we too often move through life not considering our size and stature relative to forces and objects that humble us. Geologic time. Plate tectonics. A […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
Ghosts of Polluters Past
“As new soil tests reveal the pervasiveness of lead contamination, one California barrio continues its long struggle for justice.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Final Dead Shows: Part One
“Everyone is dancing a little bit, bobbing, but really they are having an extended, possibly endless, interior experience.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
In This Police Youth Program, a Trail of Sexual Abuse Across the US
“Explorer posts, overseen by the Boy Scouts, are supposed to foster an interest in policing. They have faced nearly 200 allegations of misconduct.”
