Culture

Nikki Giovanni’s Legacy of Black Love

Nikki Giovanni’s Legacy of Black Love 3

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story Nikki Giovanni died this week, at the age of eighty-one, as that rarest of things: a best-selling poet. Her work burst onto the scene in the nineteen-sixties already fully formed—it was…

Eric Drooker’s “A Seasonal Delivery”

Eric Drooker’s “A Seasonal Delivery” 5

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story As soon as December rolls around, children everywhere start keeping an eye out for the iconic red-and-white Santa outfit. And there is perhaps nothing that preoccupies their imaginations more than the…

The Best Performances of 2024

The Best Performances of 2024 11

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story Midway through the A24 film “Sing Sing,” Divine G, an incarcerated man played with poise and panache by Colman Domingo, appears before a parole board. Divine G is the leading light…

Mike Leigh’s Love Affair with Real Life

Mike Leigh’s Love Affair with Real Life 13

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story The British realist director Mike Leigh loves the term “character actor,” which he uses often and with zeal. To him, it’s a term of great respect, meaning a performer who’s highly…

The Suicide of Britain

The Suicide of Britain 22

Legalized suicide is not a matter of mere moral preference, but an attack on central principles of Anglo-American law. Credit: Anthony Stericker/Shutterstock The British are of late more than usually intent on self-destruction. The Labour government of Sir Keir Starmer,…

Yours Cordially

Yours Cordially 24

When fan mail mattered. Credit: Rene Sandoval Jr/Shutterstock Ours is an age in which human interactions often take place through emails and text messages, but I remain attached to the tried-and-true technique of putting pen to paper—or, at least, fingers…

What Does a Translator Do?

What Does a Translator Do? 26

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story Jon Fosse’s “Septology,” the seven-novel sequence about art and God that helped win its author last year’s Nobel Prize in Literature, stars two men and a dog. The men are both…

The Animals That Made It All Worth It

The Animals That Made It All Worth It 28

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story Like many Internet users, I love nothing more than animal content. In the decade or so since I’ve joined Instagram, I’ve probably spent dozens of hours liking and commenting on posts…