In this edition: inside a cyberscam compound, behind bars but ahead of the times, up into the beyond, away from home, and under the night sky.
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Black and Blue in Cleveland
Both of Wilbert L. Cooper’s parents were cops. In this excerpt from his memoir, Cooper recounts how his mother got into the force—and what the department did to try to keep her out.
The Search for Answers, and the Week’s Top 5
We become better in many ways, but it’s the best writers who give us the information and context required to do so, and let us do the work to get there.
Sun, Sand, and Reading
“We could all use a little silence, a little levity. To that end, and with the peak of summer upon us, I’ve pulled together some of my favorite longreads that remind you of the joy it is to be human, even in this increasingly inhumane world.” Last week, I was on a sun lounger on […]
Magical Mystery Toads
The long, tangled, and mostly wrong history of the psychedelic toad.
The Rhythm of Writing: A Chat with the Writer and Editor Behind The Atavist’s New Issue
As host of The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, Brendan O’Meara is no stranger to talking about the art and craft of storytelling. In this craft-focused excerpt, we’re digging into Episode 336, in which he interviewed Atavist editor Jonah Ogles and freelance writer Cassidy Randall about her work on the latest issue of The Atavist. Cassidy Randall, a freelance writer based out […]
Knife Insurance: An Extreme Surgery Reading List
Never before have so many people sought medical intervention to address their insecurities—and never before has that intervention gone to such lengths.
‘Stay Away From Him. He’s Dangerous.’
“For years, a mysterious figure preyed on gay men in Atlanta. People on the streets called him the Handcuff Man—but the police knew his real name.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
In this edition: January begins, finding beauty, powerful blues, toxic water, and begonia batons.
Power of the Badge
Having a cop in the family can reveal new dimensions of complexity, pitting family notions of justice against institutional notions of the same.


