Jane Austen’s literary genius lies in the fact that she crafts stories that impart the most pressing of human concerns in what seem at first the most mundane of experiences. It makes her a valuable guide to life.

The absolute refusal to accept handed-down truths—whether in politics, science, religion or art—was a constant in Kurt Vonnegut’s life and work.

Barbara F. Walter offers a handy guide for predicting where political instability is most likely to occur—and it is usually when that country is moving away from democracy.

Sinéad O’Connor's provocative appearance on 'Saturday Night Live' 30 years ago drew cries of outrage. But was some of her anger justified?

While a new book of letters between Jack Miles and Mark C. Taylor uses the early months of the pandemic as the background and occasion for their letters, the friendship they display is vastly more interesting.

Powers’s chosen subjects—in cassocks or nay—are inevitably All-American, and his stories are careful studies of American mid-century life and ambition.