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
The Carpetbagger Who Saw Texas’s Future
The notion of political realignment in the Lone Star State is older than you think. It goes back to Giant, an acidic novel by Edna Ferber.
Walk on Air Against Your Better Judgment
What Seamus Heaney gave me
Zamboni
A short story
In Defense of Lists
’Tis the season for best-of coverage.
Victims of Violence Don’t Owe the Public Anything
Omar Khalifah’s debut novel resists the demand placed on those who have experienced historical atrocities to tell their stories.
The Atlantic 10
The books that made us think the most this year
Castle Rose
A poem for Sunday
How Gen Z Came to See Books as a Waste of Time
Young people might be responding to a cultural message: Reading just isn’t that important.
Aftermath
A poem for Wednesday
When Haruki Murakami Takes His Own Magic for Granted
The Japanese author’s popularity rests on a blend of mystery and accessibility. His latest novel fails to achieve that balance.