In this edition: January begins, finding beauty, powerful blues, toxic water, and begonia batons.
The New Yorker
Posted inEditor's Pick
Joan Lowell and the Birth of the Modern Literary Fraud
“A century ago, an aspiring actress published a remarkable autobiography. She made up most of it.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
Becoming a Centenarian
“Like The New Yorker, I was born in 1925. Somewhat to my surprise, I decided to keep a journal of my hundredth year.”
Posted inFeature
Best of 2025: The Stories You Missed
In a year of exceptional reading, these overlooked stories refused to let us go.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Feast Your Eyes on Japan’s Fake Food
“However persuasive they might be as facsimiles, shokuhin sampuru are subjective interpretations, seeking not only to replicate dishes but to intensify the feelings associated with the real thing.”
Posted inFeature
Best of 2025: The Most Popular Editors’ Picks of the Year
These audience hits were the most-viewed picks on our site in 2025.
Posted inEditor's Pick
If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?
“Books are inefficient, and the internet is training us to expect optimized experiences.”
Posted inFeature
A Year in Reading: When the Going Gets Tough
These are the stories I couldn’t stop thinking about—the ones that ask us to sit with darkness and still find reasons to keep going.
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Shadow President
“From the wholesale gutting of federal agencies to the ongoing government shutdown, Russell Vought has drawn the road map for Trump’s second term. Vought has consolidated power to an extent that insiders say they feel like ‘he is the commander in chief.’”
Posted inReading List
Life on Display: A Reading List on Museums
A reading list on how museums reflect culture.