Is Cohabitation the Feminist Future?
Stories about women living together are proliferating—and offering alternative visions to the nuclear family.
Books
Introducing The Atlantic’s expanded books coverage: essays, criticism, fiction, poetry, and recommendations from our writers and editors
Peter Hujar’s Photos Are All the Rage. He’d Be Shocked.
A new biography brings the late photographer’s relationship with the artist Paul Thek to vivid life.
If You Want a Better World, Act Like You Live in It
We’ve had Henry David Thoreau the environmentalist, the libertarian, the life coach. To understand his influence, think of him first as a dissident.
The Publishing Mystery That No One Wants to Talk About
A minimally speaking autistic man just wrote a best-selling book. Or did he?
The Paradox of Modern Medicine
Testing has become so advanced that doctors now miss important elements of diagnosis.
What To Read
See All
Eight of the Most Fascinating Biographies to Read
Each is animated by the author’s love—for their subject, for language, and for pushing the boundaries of what the genre can do.
Six Books That Simply Must Be Talked About
These six books demand discussion—with a pal, a date, or a book club.
Nine Books to Reset Your View of the World
Each of these titles will widen your perspective, offering you original insight and vision.
Seven Books to Read When You Have No Time to Read
These titles are worth picking up, even if you have only a moment to spare.
Newsletter
The Books Briefing
Our culture editors’ weekly guide to the best in books.
Subject to The Atlantic's Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions
Fiction
See All
Scars
A short story
Fortunes
A short story
The Honor of the Layward Brothers
A short story
We Are Not One
A short story
Chain-Gang All-Stars Is Gladiator Meets the American Prison System
Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah’s new novel is set in a world where extreme brutality has become corporate entertainment.
What Kind of Nazi Was He?
In a new memoir, the grandson of a Nazi official wonders whether “passive resistance” to Hitler’s regime ought to be categorized as a moral victory or failure.
The 1880s Political Novel That Could Have Been Written Today
The Princess Casamassima, published more than 100 years ago, carries a warning for America today.
A World Without Martin Amis
The small, cold shock of loneliness upon hearing of the great British comic writer’s death
Masculinity
A poem for Sunday
Can We Really Know the Figures of the Past?
Turning history into a juicy story is a risky endeavor: Your weekly guide to the best in books
My Novel Is a Love Letter My Mother Can’t Read
The language barrier between us has never felt more acute.
A Week Later
Published in The Atlantic in 2002
The Billionaires Who Are Threatening Democracy
In his new book, the historian Quinn Slobodian writes about the ideologues who believe that society should prioritize capital, not people.
Masha Gessen Resigns in Protest From PEN America Board
What happens when free-speech absolutists flinch