Lara B. Sharp’s efforts to gather information about what happened to her in foster care and as a ward of the state turn up nothing but incorrect records.
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One Dollar a Word? That’ll Be $28,000
Fresh off Watergate, Carl Bernstein next turned to expose the connection between the CIA and newspapers. For his efforts, he was paid $28,000. Inside one of publishing’s biggest boondoggles.
Longreads Best of 2018: All of Our No. 1 Story Picks
Here’s every story that was chosen as No. 1 in our weekly Top 5 email.
Finding Comfort in Small Spaces
Jessica Gross considers her preference for certain types of confinement.
Finding Comfort in Small Spaces
Jessica Gross considers her preference for certain types of confinement.
School for Girls
Years after recovering from anorexia, Jasmin Sandelson writes a letter to the high school friend she idolized, and explores how hunger, love, and envy shaped — and ended — their relationship.
A Long, Lasting Influence on Educational Equity
As the Philadelphia Eagles start the 2018-19 NFL season, defensive end Chris Long is also committed to making wins off the field by creating educational equity for students in the United States.
We’ve Always Hated Girls Online: A Wayback Machine Investigation
Searching for a teen girl who was once internet famous for her coding skills, a former fan uncovers a story of harassment.
In Defense of Schadenfreude
Historian Tiffany Watt Smith argues that schadenfreude, the joy we derive from another’s misfortune, is just a natural part of the very complex emotional responses we have as human beings.
The Memoirist’s Dilemma
Fourteen years after her memoir about about her father’s death was released, novelist Aminatta Forna still deals with after-effects, both good and bad.

