Literary Hub » Biography

“How Living Are His Portraits of the Dead.” Toni Morrison on the Photography of James Van Der Zee

“How Living Are His Portraits of the Dead.” Toni Morrison on the Photography of James Van Der Zee

“The narrative quality, the intimacy, the humanity of his photographs are stunning.”

By Toni Morrison | October 17, 2025

Where to start with the writing of Jamaica Kincaid.

Where to start with the writing of Jamaica Kincaid.

By Brittany Allen | October 16, 2025

Biography of a Biographer: Searching For My Father on Mark Twain’s Farm

Biography of a Biographer: Searching For My Father on Mark Twain’s Farm

“He could not imagine then that I would write in order to find him.”

By Hester Kaplan | October 16, 2025

Who Was Peter Matthiessen, Really?

Who Was Peter Matthiessen, Really?

Terry McDonell Talks to Lance Richardson About Matthiessen’s Moral Ambiguity, Bigfoot, and More

By Terry McDonell | October 14, 2025

On the Mysteries, Real and Imagined, Surrounding Christopher Columbus

On the Mysteries, Real and Imagined, Surrounding Christopher Columbus

Matthew Restall on the Familiar Political Battleground of Columbus

By Matthew Restall | October 13, 2025

A Night at Max’s Kansas City: Seeing and Being Seen in the 1970s NYC Art World

A Night at Max’s Kansas City: Seeing and Being Seen in the 1970s NYC Art World

Pat Lipsky on the Rival Groups of Artists Looking for Fame in Greenwich Village

By Pat Lipsky | October 9, 2025

Best Reviewed
Books of the Week

To Haunt and Be Haunted: On the Exhumation of Edgar Allan Poe

By Ed Simon | October 8, 2025

Inventing Gertrude Stein, Literary Cubist

By Francesca Wade | October 7, 2025

Ivan Klima, the best Czech novelist of his generation, has died.

By Jonny Diamond | October 6, 2025

When Picasso Saved Matisse’s Paintings From the Nazis

When Picasso Saved Matisse’s Paintings From the Nazis

Christopher C. Gorham on Art Theft and Artistic Solidarity in Occupied France

By Christopher C. Gorham | September 29, 2025

Are We Entering a New Golden Age of Biography?

Are We Entering a New Golden Age of Biography?

Megan Marshall on a Trio of Blockbuster Books About Gertrude Stein, James Baldwin, and Peter Matthiessen

By Megan Marshall | September 25, 2025

When Bruce Lee Trained With Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

When Bruce Lee Trained With Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Jeff Chang on What Two Iconic Athletes Learned From Their Collaboration

By Jeff Chang | September 25, 2025

Behind the Fame (and Inspirations) of Muriel Spark

Behind the Fame (and Inspirations) of Muriel Spark

Frances Wilson on the Similarities Between Spark’s Favorite Teacher and Her Most Famous Protagonist

By Frances Wilson | September 23, 2025

Painting Outside the Lines: On the Life and Work of Abstract Artist Emily Mason

Painting Outside the Lines: On the Life and Work of Abstract Artist Emily Mason

“Her best works—across mediums—came from ceding control, allowing herself to become a ‘conduit’ for the unknown.”

By Elisa Wouk Almino | September 17, 2025

Why We’re Still Reading Jane Austen on Her 250th Birthday

Why We’re Still Reading Jane Austen on Her 250th Birthday

Lucy Worsley on Austen’s Desire for Fame and Why Her Books Don’t Truly Celebrate Marriage

By Lucy Worsley | September 16, 2025

Writer, Resistance Fighter, and Kafka’s First Translator: Milena Jesenská, Forgotten No More

Writer, Resistance Fighter, and Kafka’s First Translator: Milena Jesenská, Forgotten No More

Christine Estima on Breathing Fictional Life Into a Long-Overlooked Literary Figure

By Christine Estima | September 12, 2025

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