Recommending excellent stories by Alexia Fernández Campbell, April Simpson, and Pratheek Rebala; Michael Soffer; David Gambacorta; Jarod K. Anderson; and Claire L. Evans.
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On Learning Love and Compassion, and the Week’s Top 5 Stories
“The way forward had to be with open eyes and with hearts exposed to injury. We’d seen the price we paid when we failed to bear witness.” Hello, weekend, c’mon in! The light is slowly returning to the Northern Hemisphere, and with it the promise of brighter days ahead. First up, Amory Rowe Salem writes […]
The Rise of Women Butchers, Six Reads on the Single Life, and Our Top 5
“But I’m the only woman in the classroom, and it has become absolutely essential that I do not gag. Although the number of women apprentices had been creeping up over the years, from the get-go, as a woman studying butchery, I am still a novelty.” Food writer and chef Olivia Potts, the author of “Life […]
A Pact of Love (and Our Top 5)
“The soaring vermilion bridge is one of the first sights that most transplants tick off their must-see list, and Ashwini’s work took her all around San Francisco. Avoiding even a glimpse of it took effort. But Ashwini had made a promise to another woman 7,500 miles away: She would not see the bridge until they […]
Best of 2025: All Our Number One Story Picks
Every story we selected for the number one slot in our weekly newsletter, all in one place.
The Heiress at Harvard Who Helped Revolutionize Murder Investigations—and the Case She Couldn’t Forget
“Frances Glessner Lee didn’t want to be known as a ‘rich woman who didn’t have enough to do.’ In her 60s, she became a pioneer of forensic science.”
Best of 2024: All Our Number Five Story Picks
Every story that appeared in the number five slot in our Weekly Top 5, all in one place.
The Mostly True Story of America’s First Black Private Investigator
He made his name in Chicago investigating racial violence, solving crimes, and exposing corruption. But America’s first Black private detective was hiding secrets of his own.
Embracing Envinylmentalism
A look at the environmental cost of the booming vinyl record industry.
Detectives at Work and the Week’s Top 5
“Ronald was my mother’s uncle, a fashion designer who fled Texas for New York at 19. I met him only once. In my memory, we are sitting on the front porch, the hairs standing up on my arms as the sun wanes. His head is bent over a piece of paper, sketching my 7-year-old face. […]


