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.
Books
Introducing The Atlantic’s expanded books coverage: essays, criticism, fiction, poetry, and recommendations from our writers and editors
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 Does Lena Dunham Want to Tell Us?
Her new memoir captures the cost of being an impossibly popular target.
The Eighth Deadly Sin
Humankind has devised a new form of debasement.
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.
Six Books You Can Get Lost In
These novels highlight the power—both good and bad—of unchecked fantasizing.
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
Scars
A short story
Fortunes
A short story
The Honor of the Layward Brothers
A short story
We Are Not One
A short story
A New Book Challenges the Church’s Reputation on Sex
Mainstream Christianity’s attitudes about sex have always been complicated—and its institutions might even be able to evolve.
Guest House
A poem
The Last True Private Realm
When our waking thoughts get transmuted into dreams, what do we learn?
My Near-Future Dystopia
Imagine a surveillance state powerful enough to incarcerate people for the wrong dreams. In 2025, it doesn’t feel like such a leap.
Two Murder Mysteries’ Surprising Window Into Human Genius
Why novelists love to imagine great historical figures as detectives
They Dreamed of Hitler
A newly reissued book documents the dreams of Germans living under the Nazis, charting totalitarianism’s power over the subconscious.
What to Read to Wrap Your Head Around the Climate Crisis
These visceral reported accounts will help readers better understand the new ecological status quo.
Joan Didion’s Books Should Have Been Enough
The publication of the essayist’s private letters undermines a writer famous for her control.
1994
A poem
The Gleeful, Chaotic World of Underground Comics
Diane DiMassa’s Hothead Paisan is full of unrestrained, devil-may-care attitude.