Showcasing stories from Erika Hayasaki; A.C. Thompson, James Bandler, and Lukáš Diko; Lauren Smiley; Amanda Petrusich; and Liza Weisstuch.
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Terror in the Woods and the Week’s Top 5
“I thought about the road leaving town, turning from pavement to dirt, mile after mile winding deeper into the woods. If I really thought about danger, that the road might bring me somewhere I couldn’t get out of, would I still go? Do I think anything can prevent this from happening? Why do I believe […]
They Missed Their Cruise Ship. That Was Only The Beginning.
“Nine stranded passengers made a mad dash across Africa to meet back up with their boat. And were vilified.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Notable reads by Marco Giancotti, Jessica Davey-Quantick, Reeves Wiedman, Emily Fox Kaplan, and C Pam Zhang.
Into the Belly of the Whale With Sjón
“His books dance — with light, quick steps, never breaking eye contact — all over the line between the mythic and the mundane.”
A Note of Holiday Thanks, and the Week’s Top 5
We’ll keep it short this week, folks. With our Best Of package marching on, we have our two latest roundups for you: Our favorite profiles of the year, and a look at the best-performing Audience Award winners of 2023. (On that note: As much as we’ve enjoyed adding the Audience Award, we’ve enjoyed the jockeying […]
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week we are showcasing pieces from Shoshana Walter, Stephen Lurie, Guy D. Middleton, Katherine LaGrave, and Chris Colin.
Chiamaka Okoli Was a Rarity in Physics. She Challenged Norms Until Her Untimely Death.
“On the day Chiamaka died, many mourned the loss of a bright physicist, some mourned the loss of a friend or family member, while others mourned for her husband and young son. Felix mourned for all of these reasons, but especially for Chiamaka and all the life she did not get to live.”
Inside Israel’s Fight to Make Fathers of Its Dead Soldiers
“Since last October, the families of every fallen soldier have been offered post-mortem sperm retrieval.”
Our Top 5: Reads on the Brain, Wildfire, Power, and More
This newsletter is one of our favorite things we work on as a team: a culmination of our curation work and a show of appreciation for all the hardworking writers and journalists out there who entertain, provoke, and inform us each week. Each Top 5 also serves to chronicle what’s happening in our world at […]


