Articles

The future of Baby Donuts: Patti Waldmeir on changing (and unchanging) life in modern China

Our latest Notable Narrative, “Little Girl Found,” is the tale of a baby discovered outside a Dunkin’ Donuts in Shanghai, China. Financial Times correspondent Patti Waldmeir, who was with a…
August 26, 2011
Andrea Pitzer

What we're reading: 9/11 ten years on, bat extinction and a 70-year-old mystery

In our latest roundup of narrative and narrative-ish pieces, we've pulled together stories reflecting on 9/11, researchers dealing with an unstoppable disease, the end of a family fishing dynasty, and…
August 26, 2011
Andrea Pitzer
“Why’s This So Good?” No. 9: Herbert Muschamp builds a metaphor

“Why’s This So Good?” No. 9: Herbert Muschamp builds a metaphor

What do Silly Putty, Superman and Marilyn Monroe have to do with architecture?Short answer: Nothing.Long answer:  Herbert Muschamp. In 1997, New York Times architecture critic Muschamp traveled to a then…
August 23, 2011
Alexandra Lange
Cynthia Gorney on embracing complexity “while maintaining a sense of justified outrage”

Cynthia Gorney on embracing complexity “while maintaining a sense of justified outrage”

Our latest Editors’ Roundtable looks at Cynthia Gorney's story “Too Young To Wed,” from the June issue of National Geographic. In addition to her work for National Geographic, Gorney is a…
August 19, 2011
Andrea Pitzer
August Editors' Roundtable No. 2: National Geographic on the fate of child brides

August Editors’ Roundtable No. 2: National Geographic on the fate of child brides

Our second Roundtable of August examines “Too Young To Wed: The Secret World of Child Brides,” by Cynthia Gorney. Heading to Yemen and the Indian state of Rajasthan, Gorney meets a…
August 18, 2011
Andrea Pitzer
“Why's this so good?” No. 8: Katherine Boo takes on the ties that bind

“Why's this so good?” No. 8: Katherine Boo takes on the ties that bind

I only saw my great-aunt a few times – she lived far away – but in my family, she was kind of a legend. She wore purple every day, and kept a stash of…
August 16, 2011
Douglas McGray

Exhuming a life: Michael Kruse recovers the lost history of Kathryn Norris

What would happen if you disappeared today? What if no one noticed?In our latest Notable Narrative, St. Petersburg Times reporter Michael Kruse collects relics of the life of Kathryn Norris,…
August 12, 2011
Andrea Pitzer
Gene Weingarten on journalistic ethics: two case studies from his career

Gene Weingarten on journalistic ethics: two case studies from his career

The final session of last month's Mayborn Literary Nonfiction Conference offered The Washington Post’s Gene Weingarten in conversation with Brian Sweany, deputy editor of Texas Monthly. Weingarten, who does a…
August 11, 2011
Andrea Pitzer
“Why’s this so good?” No. 7: Barry Siegel and the weight of consequences

“Why’s this so good?” No. 7: Barry Siegel and the weight of consequences

On a bright autumn morning, a man drives into the wilderness of the Utah mountains. As he arrives, the sun glows, the clouds float, the aspens glimmer in a passing…
August 9, 2011
Deborah Blum
Michael Mooney on Jerry Joseph: "What person has not thought about what it would be like to relive their youth?"

Michael Mooney on Jerry Joseph: "What person has not thought about what it would be like to relive their youth?"

Our latest Editors’ Roundtable looks at Michael Mooney’s story “Blindsided: The Jerry Joseph Basketball Scandal,” from the July issue of GQ. Mooney, a staff writer for D Magazine, previously worked for…
August 5, 2011
Andrea Pitzer