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.”
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‘I Was Trapped Forever In This Present Tense’: Carmen Maria Machado on Surviving Abuse
“She was always afraid of my voice. That was the defining factor of our relationship — fear of what I would say and write and do. She’s afraid of … the narrative that I possess.”
Welcome to Hive
Hive is a new Longreads series about women and the music that has influenced them.
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.
Hot for Teacher
When a student in her writing workshop submits a piece suggesting his character could ‘take’ a teacher just like her ‘atop her desk,’ Courtney Zoffness is flooded with memories of men touching her against her will.
Longreads Best of 2020: Essays
A small sampling of standout essays published this year.
This Week in Books: Farewell Longreads! I’m Taking This Rodeo to Substack.
To read my “This Week in Books” newsletter in the future, follow me on substack.
A Genre of Myths: A Jazz Reading List
Created in New Orleans and played around the world, the music we call jazz is filled with genius, legend, and tragedy.
The Reality of Being Sick and Alone
Diagnosed with breast cancer, Anne Boyer discusses the treatment that is poisoning her body.
What Shattered My Mother’s Mind
Winston Ross recalls the heartbreaking ordeal his family endured after his mother’s routine surgery led to post-operative delirium.
