Stephen King’s Nightmares are Personal and Real
A Shakespeare scholar’s deep dive into Stephen King’s 1970s work illuminates the elemental nature of fear.
Books
Features, reviews, interviews, and lists about books including cultural commentary and history, non-fiction, literature, and more.
‘The Midnight: Shadows’ Renders Nostalgia’s Dangers in Neon
In their music and now their graphic novel, The Midnight: Shadows, this synthwave duo weaves a distinct emotional identity around the narcotic effects of nostalgia.
Edmund White’s Longing for Being and Nothingness
The sexual world in Edmund White’s The Beautiful Room Is Empty expresses the tension between being and nothingness: the body insists on presence, yet the self remains elusive.
The Black Dahlia Is a Victim of Time
Journalist and historian William J. Mann tries to conjure who the “Black Dahlia”, Elizabeth Short, really was, but time is a powerful killer.
‘Rock of Pages’ Argues for the High of Literature in the Low of Heavy Metal
Rock of Pages makes a lively case that the theatricality of 1980s heavy metal concealed a more literate imagination than its critics would admit.
Vigdis Hjorth’s ‘Repetition’ and the Rhythm of Clinical Work
Vigdis Hjorth’s Repetition is as concerned with repression and the unconscious as it is a manifesto on the power of writing.
Melissa Auf der Maur’s Memoir Mirrors 1990s Rock Attitude and Excess
Hole bassist Melissa Auf der Maur’s memoir goes beyond clichés to offer a truly compelling perspective on the bohemian community of 1990s rock.
‘Murder Bimbo’ Tries an Unusual Twist to Storytelling
The narration in Murder Bimbo is whip-smart, clever, and satirical, but the novel’s unusual structure confuses.
Alice Coltrane Knew No Boundaries
Rather than rescuing a forgotten figure, Cosmic Music enlarges the frame through which Alice Coltrane is seen.
‘Slow Stories’ Combines Brian Eno’s Music with Bette A.’s Ambient Fiction
Brian Eno and Bette A. are on the same aesthetic page with Slow Stories, wherein the two form a kind of high-concept ASMR experience.
Alice Coltrane: Conjurer of the Majestic
Andy Beta’s Alice Coltrane biography, Cosmic Music, is an excellent work about this forward-thinking and often misunderstood musician.
10 Writers Remaking African Literature in 2026
The writers demanding our attention in 2026 interrogate power, dissect masculinity, and insist on joy in their works of satire, sorcery, and secrets from Africa and the Diaspora.