Humans are social creatures, and loneliness can be debilitating — yet, many have discovered solace in the solitary life.
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Posted inArts & Culture, Crime, Highlight, Quotes
It’s All In the Wrist (and the Blatant Lying)
In these troubling economic times, you can’t amass a giant art collection without robbing a few hundred museums any more.
Posted inQuote Posts
27 Years and 1,000 Break-Ins: North Pond Hermit — Book Edition
An excerpt from The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit — Michael Finkel’s book on Christopher Knight, the hermit who survived by committing 1,000 break-ins over nearly three decades.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Into The Woods: How One Man Survived Alone in the Wilderness For 27 years
An excerpt from The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit — Michael Finkel’s book on Christopher Knight, the man who simply walked away from the modern world into the woods of rural Maine in 1986 — without any real plan for survival. Living alone for 27 years in a […]
Posted inEditor's Pick, First Chapters, Nonfiction
Mourning the Low-Rent, Weirdo-Filled East Village of Old
An excerpt of Vanishing New York: How a Great City Lost its Soul, by Jeremiah Moss.
Posted inFirst Chapters, Nonfiction, Story
Mourning the Low-Rent, Weirdo-Filled East Village of Old
An excerpt of Vanishing New York: How a Great City Lost its Soul, by Jeremiah Moss.
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
What Happens to Your Identity When You Don’t Speak to Anyone for 27 Years
Anyone who reveals what he’s learned, Chris told me, is not by his definition a true hermit. Chris had come around on the idea of himself as a hermit, and eventually embraced it. When I mentioned Thoreau, who spent two years at Walden, Chris dismissed him with a single word: “dilettante.” True hermits, according to […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Man Who Hid from the World for Nearly 30 Years
Michael Finkel tracks down the man known as the North Pond Hermit: Christopher Thomas Knight lived in a secret camp in the woods of Central Maine, stealing food and supplies from nearby homes. “I never felt lonely. To put it romantically: I was completely free.”
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List, Top 5
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Below, our favorite stories of the week. Kindle users, you can also get them as a Readlist. Sign up to receive this list free every Friday in your inbox. * * * 1. The Strange & Curious Tale of the Last True Hermit Michael Finkel | GQ | August 20, 2014 | 30 minutes (7,500 […]
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List, Top 5
Longreads Best of 2014: Here Are All of Our No. 1 Story Picks from This Year
All through December, we’ll be featuring Longreads’ Best of 2014. To get you ready, here’s a list of every story that was chosen as No. 1 in our weekly Top 5 email. If you like these, you can sign up to receive our free weekly email every Friday. * * * I Smoked Pot with […]
