How America’s first suicide attack changed one man’s fortune forever.
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‘Yours Lovingly’: A Collection of Stories About Writing Letters
A man writes to a convicted killer. Fan letters to a troubled country star. Letters by parents. Here are five stories about the letters we write to one another.
‘We weren’t out to change government, we were out to destroy it’
How an Army private plotted murder, and attempted to form an anti-government militia made up of U.S. soldiers: After extra duty one night, Aguigui remembers, Salmon told him that “the leader of the resistance in the game was identical to how he envisioned me.” When Aguigui responded, “We could do this,” Salmon told him, “I’ll […]
Medellín: Latin America’s New Superstar
How Medellín went from crime-ridden cocaine capital to one of the world’s most innovative cities: The Medellín Cartel, headed by Pablo Escobar, perhaps the only drug lord to become a worldwide household name, transported billions of dollars worth of cocaine, which had surpassed coffee as Colombia’s leading export by 1982. Arriving on U.S. shores, the […]
‘Yours Lovingly’: A Collection of Stories About Writing Letters
A man writes to a convicted killer. Fan letters to a troubled country star. Letters by parents. Here are five stories about the letters we write to one another.
On Being Gay in Medicine
A leading Harvard pediatrician’s story: During medical school, I was on the admissions committee. Two people interviewed each applicant and then presented to the rest of the committee. There was an applicant who was outstanding in every category; I gave him a 10 out of 10. The other committee member who in- terviewed him, a […]
When Groucho Marx Quoted ‘The Waste Land’ to T.S. Eliot
Strange but true: Groucho Marx and T.S. Eliot were pen-pals. Their correspondence began in 1961, when T.S. Eliot sent Groucho Marx a fan letter. It continued for several years, with them finally meeting for dinner in 1964. From a recent post on Daybook: The much-postponed event took place just seven months before Eliot’s death at […]
Vagabonds, Crafty Bauds, and the Loyal Huzza: A History of London at Night
In the 16th & 17th centuries, “nightwalking” was a transgressive act in a city still on the brink of total nighttime illumination, but with complex implications depending on your social status.
The Self-Driving Revolution
Let’s be honest: Humans never should have been allowed behind the wheel in the first place. There’s so much that can go wrong, so much room for negligence—it’s incredible to think that we managed human-controlled cars for as long as we did. Here’s a reading list covering the past, present and future of transportation.
