“Accommodating the dead, like accommodating the living, has always entailed a head-on collision with the awkward reality that we have a finite amount of physical space.” Okay, yes, sure, maybe you weren’t expecting a quote about dead bodies to kick off your Friday morning. But I assure you that our new feature, “Disneyland of the […]
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Exploring Public Lands and the Week’s Top 5
“Though we were only a few miles into our walk, already the surprise of my surroundings was overwhelming. The surreal lakebeds. The pink skies. Beauty Peak. The pronghorn. We were left in one of those mindless trances that comes when nature completely engulfs you. No amount of planning or research can prepare you for an […]
On 4th and Broadway: Remembering Tower Records
“To this day, I’ve never stopped thinking about that music sanctuary for the twenty years it existed at that location.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Featuring stories from Ryan Hockensmith, John Woodrow Cox, Ryan Nourai, Mary H.K. Choi, and Ferris Jabr.
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week we are showcasing pieces from Shoshana Walter, Stephen Lurie, Guy D. Middleton, Katherine LaGrave, and Chris Colin.
(Alleged) Kings of the Con and the Week’s Top 5
“[T]he most compelling tales of grift aren’t the ones that depend on technology: the bottomless library of fraud-ready photos; the platforms that let anyone claim to be an epidemiologist or electoral fraud whistleblower; the software that can plop your face onto another person’s. No, the tales that captivate us most almost always reveal a person’s longing.” […]
Up, Up, and Away to the Week’s Top 5
“Wallace was a fly-by-the-seat-of-his-pants sort. A 54-year-old Massachusetts lawyer and real estate developer, he couldn’t afford to fly conservatively. Gas ballooning, similar to jockeyship, favored lightweight pilots, who could stock their baskets with more sand. Compared with his slighter opponents, Wallace’s six-foot-five, 240-pound frame meant that the equivalent of three additional 30-pound bags of sand […]
600? Is That Even Possible?
“There are bookshelves in every room of my home except the bathroom, and I often squirrel away small books as emergency reading to be carried in purses and backpacks, for buses, trains, and waiting rooms.” Well, here we are. We’ve been rounding up our five favorite stories of the week for more than 12 years […]
A Forgotten Deportation, a New Questionnaire Series, and Our Top 5
An essay about a forgotten deportation and the reckoning it left behind, a glimpse into Maria Popova’s writing and reading life, and our five recommended stories of the week.
Not Serious People: A ‘Succession’ Reading List
Great writing begets great writing — and the commentary around the HBO smash hit is some of the best around.


