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.
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Fiction
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Scars
A short story
Fortunes
A short story
The Honor of the Layward Brothers
A short story
We Are Not One
A short story
We Love in the Only Ways We Can
A poem for Sunday
Six Books to Read During a Stressful Family Holiday
Reading about other people’s kin, fictional or not, may help you feel better about yours.
It’s Time to Take Another Look at Parole
A new book by Ben Austen argues that prisoners need a path to redemption.
A Modest Proposal for Publishing
An author isn’t the only person who brought a finished title to life.
Our Forests Need More Fire, Not Less
The American history of wildfire suppression has contributed to today’s most destructive blazes.
The Perfect Antidote to an Age of Angsty Literature
The spiky, unsentimental writings of Diana Athill refuse to romanticize emotional discontent.
Zombie History Stalks Ukraine
In a haunted novel, memories of a brutal past transform bodies as well as psyches.
The Invisible Forces Behind the Books We Read
And why they’re so hard to measure
Seven Books That Actually Capture What Sickness Is Like
These titles aren’t interested in sticking to a simple narrative about sickness and health—they explore the textures of human life.
Bored
Published in The Atlantic in 1994