“But twenty-three years after Genesis, Alter has completed his work: a finished Hebrew Bible, three volumes lovingly footnoted; an altogether worthier object of contemplation than some fantasy series, or Lyndon Johnson. And I, who am but dust and ashes, review it.”
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Posted inEditor's Pick
The Soviet Children Who Survived World War II
Svetlana Alexievich’s Last Witnesses, a 1985 collection of testimonials from then-Soviets who were children during the Second World War, has been translated into English and excerpted at the Paris Review. “It became connected like that in my memory, that war is when there’s no papa.”
Posted inArts & Culture, Crime, Highlight, Quote Posts, Quotes
How Bagel Makers’ Union Local 338 Beat NYC’s “Kosher Nostra”
‘“A bagel,” the newspaper of record explained in 1960, “is an unsweetened doughnut with rigor mortis.”’
Posted inNonfiction
You Robbie, You Baka
On having a twin with cerebral palsy and navigating school bullies.
Posted inNonfiction
Longreads Best of 2020: All of Our No. 1 Story Picks
Here’s every story that was chosen as No. 1 in our weekly Top 5 email.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books, Essays & Criticism, Science & Nature, Story
At the Very Least We Know the End of the World Will Have a Bright Side
Solarpunk, a new genre of science fiction, demands radical optimism of its writers and readers. It takes the apocalypse as given, but doesn’t assume the worst of people living through it.
Posted inNonfiction
Longreads Best of 2019: Food Writing
We asked writers and editors to choose some of their favorite stories of the year in various categories. Here is the best in food writing.
Posted inStory
Ten Outstanding Short Stories to Read in 2021
Pravesh Bhardwaj read and and shared 304 short stories on the #longreads Twitter hashtag in 2020. Here are his favorites.
Posted inEssays & Criticism, Highlight, Quotes
Life After Pain
One day, Ge Gao’s right hand stopped working. Then the pain started, and it’s never stopped.
Posted inEditor's Pick
“Your Judge Is Your Destiny”
“The judge keeps a low public profile, but among attorneys in Louisiana, her reputation is feared. According to data from the Executive Office for Immigration Review, which oversees our nation’s immigration courts, Judge Reese has presided over more than 200 asylum hearings during the past five years. The applicants who have stood before her have […]
