Colorado’s San Luis Valley was a wildlife poacher’s paradise.
Then an undercover federal agent arrived.
“Fifteen teams lifted off from Switzerland in gas ballooning’s most audacious race. Three days later, two of them drifted into Belarusian airspace—but only one would survive.”
In this edition: Bezos, paper, scissors; feast or famine; one reason to stay here; any way you slice it; the real Winter Olympics, and more.
“The war on Gaza is at its core retributive: an act of collective punishment.”
In this edition: ICE fighter, tectonic researcher, prairie preserver, regal grandmother, wild timekeeper.
“When Putin invaded, a historian in Kyiv saw that Ukraine’s cultural heritage was in danger. So he set out to save as much of it as he could.”
This week’s stories include techno, New Zealand, relationships, background music and doodles.
We’re recommending stories by Danny Chau, Annalisa Quinn, Bijan Stephen, Jordan Michelman, and Anna Wiener.
The Longreads questionnaire with Neal Allen and Anne Lamott, a book excerpt from Kory Stamper, and our Top 5 Longreads of the week.
How Mac Barnett got inspired to write books for kids, a tense, deeply reported crime story, and our weekly Top 5.
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Tuesdays and Thursdays, we'll send you our latest originals and all our editor's picks—and Fridays, go even deeper with our Top 5 of the Week.
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