I’m reasonably certain that John Ashcroft didn’t recognize himself disguised as the evil high school guidance counselor in one of my novels. But like so much else, this thorny matter requires consideration on a case-by-case basis. In Mary McCarthy’s story “The Cicerone,” Peggy Guggenheim, the important collector of modern art, appears as Polly Grabbe, an […]
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Posted inLongreads News
The Longreads Membership Is Now Twice as Powerful
Since 2009, Longreads has thrived as a service and a community thanks to your direct financial support. Without Longreads Members’ contributions, it’s possible we would have had to shut down after just a couple years. Now, here we are in 2014, with a global community of more than half a million readers. In April, Longreads […]
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List
'Orange is the New Black' is Back: A Reading List on the Representation of Prison
Now that we’ve all had a chance to finish watching Orange is the New Black (who am I kidding — we all binge watched it in a day or two, right?), I thought I’d share four pieces that clarify and critique the way prison is represented on the show. The first two pieces cover season one, for […]
Posted inNonfiction, Story
Looking for Raymond Chandler’s Los Angeles
Tracing Raymond Chandler’s early days in L.A.
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List
Longreads Best of 2014: Science Stories
We asked a few writers and editors to choose some of their favorite stories of the year in specific categories. Here, the best in science writing.
Posted inNonfiction, Profiles & Interviews, Story
Interview: Former ‘Matilda’ Star Mara Wilson on Leaving Hollywood and Becoming a Writer
“It’s very hard to be a perfectionist growing up in the film world. It reinforces all of your worst fears about perfection and doing things right.”
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List
Longreads Best of 2014: Essay Writing
We asked a few writers and editors to choose some of their favorite stories of the year in specific categories. Here, the best in essay writing.
Posted inBooks, Nonfiction, Story
All the Language in the World Won’t Make a Bookshelf Exist
After leaving a drag-and-click job at a newspaper to learn carpentry, Nina MacLaughlin takes on her first big solo project: building bookshelves for her father.
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List
'Orange is the New Black' is Back: A Reading List on the Representation of Prison
Now that we’ve all had a chance to finish watching Orange is the New Black (who am I kidding — we all binge watched it in a day or two, right?), I thought I’d share four pieces that clarify and critique the way prison is represented on the show. The first two pieces cover season one, for […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Obliteration of a Person
Marion Coutts recalls the last months of her husband, art critic Tom Lubbock, after he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Excerpted from Coutt’s memoir The Iceberg: Fast forward to February. The future has arrived early. Tom has a severe fit in the small hours of the morning. He had gone away by himself to […]
