A Place in the Sun
A new book tells the story of Ballroom Marfa, the West Texas arts center that has brought together creatives such as Takashi Murakami and Agnes Denes for the last 20 years
Varieties of Humbug
My enduring fascination with The Wizard of Oz
Editor’s Picks
This week, don’t miss a charming history of American presidents’ financial affairs, Tove Jansson’s chronicle of summers in Finland, and a collection of Dorothy Parker’s New Yorker reviews
Architecture’s Philosopher
A new coffee-table book celebrates the life and career of I. M. Pei, the modernist visionary behind Paris’s Louvre Pyramid and Hong Kong’s Bank of China Tower
True Confessions?
Did Joan Didion’s husband have the hots for Eve Babitz—or was he moving in another direction?
Can’t Read, Won’t Read
Have children fallen out of love with books? And, if so, does it matter?
Adventures in Absinthe
When I set out to expose a black-market counterfeiter of vintage absinthe, things didn’t go the way I expected
Yulia Navalnaya Picks Up the Baton
Eight months after the Kremlin murdered her husband, Alexei Navalny’s widow reflects on their marriage, their shared aspirations for their home country, and why she doesn’t hate Vladimir Putin
Teenage Wasteland
At the turn of the century, Abercrombie & Fitch led a pop-culture movement hyping up consumerism. Millennials bought in—and got duped
Call Him by His Name
In an interview, André Aciman discusses the inspiration for Call Me by Your Name and his new memoir, about his own teenage years spent in Italy
Deadly Pleasures to Listen to, Read, and Watch
Get in the Halloween spirit with this month’s best mystery podcast, book, and movie
All About Marilyn
Eve Arnold’s newly discovered pictures of Marilyn Monroe capture the enduring friendship between Magnum’s first female photographer and an actress fighting for success in a male-dominated world
Editor’s Picks
This week, don’t miss a memoir from the interwar Jane Austen, the musings of a thrice Booker Prize–shortlisted author, and a biography of the humorist Will Rogers
The Dickens of Appalachia
In an interview, Barbara Kingsolver discusses her little-known first book, the inspiration behind Demon Copperhead, and what J. D. Vance gets wrong about the rural South
The Living-Room M.F.A.
As the cost of graduate writing programs goes up and the degree’s perceived value declines, alternatives are springing up far from campus
Rosario Candela’s New York
The Jazz Age architect invented penthouse living, remaking the city’s skyline—and attracting buyers including Jackie O—along the way
