I had forgotten about this tradition, but I love it (and not least because it prompts me to reflect on the magazine pieces I've enjoyed). I suspect i'll be back with more (and hopefully they will be less political), but I want to mention Sean Wilentz's New Yorker piece from the fall on what I will un-ironically call Glenn Beck's intellectual heritage in the John Birch Society and ultraconservative Mormonism:
I was actually less than overwhelmed by the TJ's piece, because there wasn't a lot of meat there, largely because no one currently in the organization talked. The New Yorker piece Russ mentions was quite good, but there hasn't been a really strong piece that stuck with me in the way that (for instance) the Willingham piece a few years ago did.
I was very moved by "Letting Go," by Atul Gawande, in the New Yorker this summer -- and it also made me think long and hard about end-of-life issues. http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/02/100802fa_fact_gawande
I found the New Yorker article on Shigeru Miyamoto in the most recent issue to be a fascinating look at a man who's shaped a lot of cultural imagery and his industry. (Naturally, there's a whole raft of other subjects any serious look at video games entails.)
Whatever else one thinks of him, Christopher Hitchens' "So, it seems I'm about to die from cancer" piece was extremely well done. http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2010/09/hitchens-201009
Two New York Times magazine articles stick out to me right now: one on the teenagers fighting for the Dream Act, and one on women who are trying to make a difference in the world through personal acts and efforts (running marathons to help women in the Congo, etc.) and what that has meant for them personally and for their causes.
I had forgotten about this tradition, but I love it (and not least because it prompts me to reflect on the magazine pieces I've enjoyed). I suspect i'll be back with more (and hopefully they will be less political), but I want to mention Sean Wilentz's New Yorker piece from the fall on what I will un-ironically call Glenn Beck's intellectual heritage in the John Birch Society and ultraconservative Mormonism:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/10/18/101018fa_fact_wilentz?currentPage=all
Pico Ayer on Istanbul, from National Geographic: http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/city-guides/istanbul-traveler/
ReplyDeleteI was actually less than overwhelmed by the TJ's piece, because there wasn't a lot of meat there, largely because no one currently in the organization talked. The New Yorker piece Russ mentions was quite good, but there hasn't been a really strong piece that stuck with me in the way that (for instance) the Willingham piece a few years ago did.
ReplyDeleteI was very moved by "Letting Go," by Atul Gawande, in the New Yorker this summer -- and it also made me think long and hard about end-of-life issues. http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/02/100802fa_fact_gawande
ReplyDeleteI learned very little new from that TJ's piece.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I was a little !!! to discover that my tiny little town was one of only five to get a new store this year.
I found the New Yorker article on Shigeru Miyamoto in the most recent issue to be a fascinating look at a man who's shaped a lot of cultural imagery and his industry. (Naturally, there's a whole raft of other subjects any serious look at video games entails.)
ReplyDeleteMight I recommend the Long Reads twitter feed? http://twitter.com/longreads
ReplyDeleteAlong those lines, http://givemesomethingtoread.com/
ReplyDeleteWhatever else one thinks of him, Christopher Hitchens' "So, it seems I'm about to die from cancer" piece was extremely well done. http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2010/09/hitchens-201009
ReplyDeleteLoved the Wilentz piece also, and enjoyed Jill Lepore's piece on the Tea Party:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/05/03/100503fa_fact_lepore
A few more:
ReplyDeleteThe NYMag piece on Madoff in prison.
NYMag, "Growing Up Gaga"
This piece was my most haunting of 2010. I can't bring myself to say favorite.
ReplyDeleteGood recommendation -- this one was fascinating.
ReplyDeleteTwo New York Times magazine articles stick out to me right now: one on the teenagers fighting for the Dream Act, and one on women who are trying to make a difference in the world through personal acts and efforts (running marathons to help women in the Congo, etc.) and what that has meant for them personally and for their causes.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this article from Outside magazine back in January about Colton Harris-Moore.
ReplyDeletehttp://outsideonline.com/outside/culture/201001/colton-harris-moore-plane-steal-1.html