When the pandemic upended her daily life, Deb Olin Unferth started walking, and one day met a goose. A measured, tender tale of loss and love and difficult friendship — one that warns you throughout that a sting is coming, but manages to sneak up and wallop you anyway. He was feisty, the town bully, […]
essays
Posted inAnnouncements, Nonfiction, Writing
Calling All Writers: Pitch Us Your Essays
Do you have an idea for a Longreads essay? Now is the time to share it.
Posted inNonfiction
Curator Spotlight: Vesna Jaksic Lowe on What It Means To Straddle Multiple Cultures
The writer of the Immigrant Strong newsletter wants to diversify your bookshelf.
Posted inNonfiction
’Names Have Power’: A Reading List on Names, Identity, and the Immigrant Experience
Whether adding a hyphen or changing one’s name completely, the process of naming can be complex.
Posted inCulture, Essays & Criticism, Highlight, Writing
The Secrets of a Hidden Diary
A hidden diary, a love story, and a mystery.
Posted inArts & Culture, Essays & Criticism, Highlight, Profiles & Interviews, Quote Posts, Quotes
‘Writing Was a Way to Have My Say’: An Interview with Author Sejal Shah
“I didn’t know at first what I was doing. I was just trying to represent the inside of the feeling.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
What Is Owed
A sweeping examination of racial wealth inequality in the U.S. brought about by centuries of government policies that have worked against Black Americans. Nikole Hannah-Jones argues that reparations must be the center of any policies adopted to help reduce the wealth gap.
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Trayvon Generation
“I believed I could keep my sons alive by loving them, believed in the magical powers of complete adoration and a love ethic that would permeate their lives.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
Missed Calls
Lauren Collins’ father died in March of leukemia as the pandemic began to unfold, forcing her to learn to grieve in a time of enforced isolation. This essay is a remembrance of her father and an exploration of grieving from a distance.