The 10 most popular reading lists on Longreads this year.
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It’s Triller Night, Marv!: Trump’s 9/11 MMA Fever Dream
“What do I care for seeing these legends (insofar as MMA even has “legends”), in a sport not their own, at ages that seem criminally old? It’s sadder than any strung-out rocker strumming bloated and hoarse-throated to a braying audience. You can’t, in good conscience, want these men to play their hits again.”
The Long, Strange History of the Baseball Cap
“How did it become both the quintessential piece of a ballplayer’s uniform, as well as the go-to wardrobe accessory for stars, artists, and the common person?”
Mulling Desire, Honoring Murdered Women, and Our Top 5
I had no idea that the hot, tingly pain of blood returning to a frozen extremity is called the screaming barfies, until I read “What Is a Body For?” by Diana Saverin.
I Spent 7 Straight Hours On a Chairlift. Here’s What I Learned About Why We Still Ski
“Despite rising costs, surging crowds, and shorter winters, people still flock to the mountains. What keeps us coming back?”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
In this edition: January begins, finding beauty, powerful blues, toxic water, and begonia batons.
Eminem Found Himself in “Lose Yourself.” Will We Ever Let It Go?
“It also spawned his biggest hit—an underdog anthem that lives on through commercials and sports arena sound systems to this day.
Iconic Comics of a Cuban Cartoonist and the Week’s Top 5
“If an image is the idea of an idea, then a franchise is that second idea in perpetuity, because the image is the thing you can sand down and actually sell. You can’t profit off of history unless you rewrite it.” Welcome to the weekend! Our newest Longreads feature, by writer and culture critic Gyasi […]
Andrew Luck Finally Reveals Why He Walked Away From the NFL
“He had no idea what came next, or how hard it would be to find out. All he knew was that he didn’t have to pretend anymore.”
Inside Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s Great Wrexham Gambit
“What happens when two Hollywood actors who know nothing about soccer buy a middling pro team in Wales?”


