The Buffalo

Though no one was paying attention, she smoothed her skirt again, did what she could so no one would notice how weak and disgraced she was, haughtily protecting her… More

The Self-Deceptions of Empire

David Bromwich is finalist for the 2015 PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay for the collection Moral Imagination, which explores the importance of imagination and sympathy in… More

By Way of a Preface

This ode to the essay is from Charles D'Ambrosio's Loitering: New and Collected Essays, a finalist for the 2015 PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay. More

Three Essays from Limber

Limber is a collection of essays which chart the world's history through its trees and a finalist for the 2015 PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay. More

The Empathy Exams

The title essay of Leslie Jamison's The Empathy Exams, a finalist for the 2015 PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay. More

Our Own Maps

My memory was a gift until it became a curse, until no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t forget things I desperately needed to forget so I might… More

The Beiruti Hustle

Beirut is the Elizabeth Taylor of cities: insane, beautiful, tacky, falling apart, aging, and forever drama laden. She’ll also marry any infatuated suitor who promises to make her life… More

Amina

She has, I presume, told him about me: the first heart she broke (or perhaps it was the other way around). It would be different if I was alone… More