Many of us went to school with a Shuggie Bain. Depending on what school you attended, there might be several pupils like him in each class. more

The main branch of the New York City library at Fifth Avenue straddling 41st and 42nd Streets is one of the most famous public temples of knowledge in the United States. Even if you’re just a … more

“The attack on the Fascist redoubt which had been called off on the previous occasion was to be carried out tonight. I oiled my 10 Mexican cartridges, dirtied my bayonet (the things give your … more

I had no idea. I have been an avid student of American history both before my arrival in this country and while living here and I still had no idea. I prided myself on the breadth of my … more

When you look up a word in the dictionary, do you end up spending half an hour looking up 20 other words? Psychologists have a clinical term for this. You could look it up. more

It seems an appropriate season to revisit the work of an author who wanted nothing but that his readers recognize the unexpected grace in people unlike themselves and offer them an unfamiliar mercy. more

“The Proud Tower: A Portrait of the World Before the War, 1890-1914” was a bestseller when it was published by historian Barbara Tuchman in 1966. Drawn from a collection of lengthy essays … more

Sometime in 1987, I think, I accidentally got to hear Toni Morrison read at a private gathering. I was a neophyte assistant at a large publisher in New York City. A sympathetic editor had offered … more

The best thing about sailing, as far as I’m concerned, is that when you do it right it’s really boring. more

“A Journal of the Plague Year,” Daniel Defoe’s short book about the 1665 outbreak in London of what is believed to have been bubonic plague, is never a comforting read; it is even less so in these times of a global pandemic. more