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A Present-Day 1984

Every Tongue Shall Confess

Pre-War Prima Donna

Apollonia Poilâne

The woman behind the legendary Paris bakery recommends the best cookbooks

Little Woman

Florence Pugh is a kick playing the least likable March sister in Greta Gerwig’s film adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s novel

The Underground

The retro grandeur of Soviet-era metro stations

Master and Commander

The U.S.S. Lincoln projects American sea power on a small speck off the coast of Newfoundland

Why Are We Still Loving Friends?

It’s the most streamed show on Netflix. Teenagers quote its jokes—even though it is 25 years old. So what explains its appeal?

The Eyes and Ears of Expressionism

The Panto Season ‘Tis upon Us

The British pantomime is noisy, camp, and a complete hoot

EPISODE V: “Nothing Ever Changes in Palm Beach”

A little more correspondence from Lansy Everett, formerly of the New York Herald Tribune, Vanity Fair, Esquire, Vogue, and Harper’s Bazaar

First Impressions

A new book remembers more than a decade spent in the orbit of Beckett and de Beauvoir. Here, its author describes her early encounters with the literary stars

Impeachment-Palooza

With disequilibrium the order of the day, some podcasts make smart, entertaining sense of it all

Cathy Graham’s Sketchbook

Back in the U.S.S.R.

First Love

Little-known correspondence from Elizabeth Bishop offers a glimpse into the poet’s romantic life

Sometimes, Bigger Is Better

Never-before-seen Avedon, a Trump-free Palm Beach, Helmut’s nudes: everyone loves a beautiful coffee-table book, and this year options abound

Donald Trump’s Completely Unverified London Diary*

The “stable genius” becomes a laughingstock

Once More unto the Holidays

Reliably spirited tracks from David Bowie, Prince, Dire Straits, XTC, Talking Heads, Ice Cube, Buzzcocks, the Clash, and more

House Style

Little Luxuries

America’s Next Top Model

Now in its 23rd year, this American city is ready for its close-up—as is its surprise builder!

EPISODE IV: “The Clue Lay in the Outsider Art!”

Still more correspondence from Lansy Everett, formerly of the New York Herald Tribune, Vanity Fair, Esquire, Vogue, Worth, and Harper’s Bazaar

B. J. Novak

So much more than a children’s book: on metafiction for kids