On December 31st, 2025, Writers Against the War on Gaza ended their boycott of PEN America, declaring a win in the collective effort of pressure and condemnation that they helped to organize: …as PEN America has responded to our demands Read more >
Welcome back, and happy new year to all! I hope everyone’s holiday break was filled with slowness, rich food, and delectable winter reads. I know many people who plan their holiday reading months in advance: that rare time of year Read more >
Harlequin France, which is owned by HarperCollins, has just confirmed that they’re shifting away from human translators with an eye to robot replacements. As The Bookseller reported this morning, this change has been in the works for several weeks. According Read more >
It’s Reaping Monday, when all the “will get back to you in the new year!” emails we sowed in December are coming due. If you’re trying to get away from your inbox, or the sun setting too early, or dry Read more >
According to a YouGov poll released at year’s end, American reading habits stay in the toilet. Four in ten Americans didn’t read a single book during our last spin around the sun. And of the 60% who did venture to Read more >
Happy Hanukkah and a merry early Christmas! Hope you’re getting some time to rest, be with friends, and reflect on the year. I’m starting to wrap gifts and meal plan for my visit home—I like to try one new recipe Read more >
This week, we prepared for year’s end with some golden oldies and nurturing fare. Some of us, like resident home chef James Folta, made miso soup to keep the rain away. All of us stayed inside, bringing the best of Read more >
I’m a devotee of two film series at my local Brooklyn indie theater: Ridiculous <> Sublime, a series highlighting “the most bombastic and confounding movies imaginable,” and Hubba Hubba, a series by my friend Mark Pagán that takes “a long Read more >
Publishing people used to corner the market on yuletide bacchanals. You hear stories. Decadence was expected. HR, AWOL. In last year’s Cut, Emily Gould interviewed partygoers from previous epochs and turned up all sorts of outrageous anecdotes. Back in the Read more >
It’s been the opposite of what you might call a banner year for legacy media. Public faith in our papers of record continues to erode. The monoculture’s in shambles, and you can’t swing an inbox open without hitting a dozen Read more >
New York City’s three public library systems released their list of most checked out books from the year, topped by Percival Everett’s James and followed by The God of the Woods by Liz Moore and Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros. The top ten Read more >
Amazon announced a few new Kindle features last week, including “recaps” to help you catch up on what happened previously in a book series and something called “Ask this Book,” which supposedly allows you to “stay immersed in your books” Read more >
Pirate of the Caribbean Johnny Depp, who drifted out to sea after allegations of abuse, recently announced he’s producing an English language film based on Mikhail Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita. Depp made the announcement at a film festival in Read more >
Happy Friday! We’ve been so deep in end of the year lists over here that it’s hard for me to type “Friday” and not to immediately start thinking of things like “2025’s Top Fridays” or “Here are the days before Read more >
This was a week of discovery, over at Lit Hub. We explored strange new worlds and re-contextualized the familiar. And as usual, we relished the puns and the bits. James Folta has been enjoying a new Jon Bois video essay. Read more >
George Plimpton, impresario founder of The Paris Review, has a literary legacy that keeps on giving. Now, fans of the man can peep into his old townhouse. Otherwise known as the OG offices of America’s OG literary magazine. The storied Read more >
Around this time of year, I start seeing this 2021 Tweet make the rounds: “Most Americans on minimum wage earn less than a Dickensian allegory for destitution”—it’s compelling! And it certainly feels right to someone like me, who thinks it’s Read more >
As Reuters reported yesterday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has enforced new font restrictions in the state department, because Trump and his hogmen continue to keep their eye on what matters to Americans. Under the last administration, the State Department Read more >
This week, the internet got a fun little treat when Mad Men, a pinnacle of early prestige TV, landed on HBOMax after a long absence from streaming services. Unfortunately, the new, much-hyped 4K restoration hit our home screens with flaws. Read more >
Over the weekend, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) issued a statement condemning the pending merger between two massive media titans: Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery. But laymen may be wondering, why are the writers so upset? We all hate Read more >
