Essays

From New York Times bestselling and National Book Award-winning author Evan Osnos comes a timely and provocative collection of essays exploring American oligarchy and the culture of excess, providing a wry, unfiltered look at how the ultrarich shape our social and political landscape.

One of America's greatest living literary legends invites you think for yourself in this compelling narrative of manipulation, power, and the human condition.

Number-one best-selling author John Green presents a deeply moving and insightful collection of personal essays adapted and expanded from his groundbreaking podcast....

In Thomas Ligotti's first nonfiction outing, an examination of the meaning (or meaninglessness) of life through an insightful, unsparing argument that proves the greatest horrors are not the products of our imagination but instead are found in reality.

David Sedaris’s best stories and essays, spanning his remarkable career - as selected and read by the author himself. Featuring fresh and classic recordings, including a new essay and an interview exclusive to the audiobook....

James Baldwin galvanized the nation in the early days of the civil-rights movement with his eloquent manifesto....

With Calypso, Sedaris sets his formidable powers of observation - and humor - toward middle age and mortality....

One of the most influential works of this century, The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays is a crucial exposition of existentialist thought....

The best-selling author of The Bomber Mafia focuses on "minor geniuses" and idiosyncratic behavior to illuminate the ways all of us organize experience in this "delightful" (Bloomberg News) collection of writings from The New Yorker....

The great insights of the Stoics are spread over a wide range of ancient sources. This book brings them all together for the first time. It systematically presents what the various Stoic philosophers said on every important topic, accompanied by an eloquent commentary that is clear and concise....

A collection of confessions from women around the world, Want is a revelatory, sensational and game-changing exploration of women’s sexuality that asks, and answers: How do women feel about sex when they have the freedom to be totally anonymous?

From the number-one New York Times best-selling author of the Man Booker Prize-winning novel Lincoln in the Bardo and the story collection Tenth of December, a 2013 National Book Award Finalist for Fiction....

Do lobsters feel pain? Did Franz Kafka have a funny bone? David Foster Wallace answers these questions and more in essays that are also enthralling narrative adventures....

In Dad is Fat, stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan, who’s best known for his legendary riffs on Hot Pockets, bacon, manatees, and McDonald's, expresses all the joys and horrors of life with five young children....

“Books can connect people across time zones and zip codes, across cultures, national boundaries, and historical eras”, Kakutani writes in her introduction to Ex Libris....

“Any story that starts will also end.” As a writer, Ann Patchett knows what the outcome of her fiction will be. Life, however, often takes turns we do not see coming. Patchett ponders this truth in these wise essays that afford a fresh and intimate look into her mind and heart....

In ten brilliantly written chapters, Stephen King delivers one colorful observation after another about the great stories, books, and films that comprise the horror genre—from Frankenstein and Dracula to The Exorcist, The Twilight Zone, and Earth vs. The Flying Saucers.

First published in 1979, Joan Didion's The White Album records indelibly the upheavals and aftermaths of the 1960s. Examining key events, figures, and trends of the era—through the lens of her own spiritual confusion, Joan Didion helped to define mass culture as we now understand it.

Featuring a new introduction by Ken Liu, this revised edition of Ursula K. Le Guin’s first full-length collection of essays covers her background as a writer and educator, her thoughts on writing, and her commentary on literary science fiction and fantasy and their future.

The collection of 10 absorbing tales by master psychotherapist Irvin D. Yalom uncovers the mysteries, frustrations, pathos, and humor at the heart of the therapeutic encounter....

You may "know" Jenny Slate from her Netflix special, Stage Fright, as the creator of Marcel the Shell, or as the star of Obvious Child. But you don't really know Jenny Slate until you get bonked on the head by her absolutely singular writing style....

Annie Jones always assumed adulthood would mean adventure: a high-powered career; life in a big, bustling city; and travels to far-flung places she’d longed to see. But her reality turned out differently....

In this surprising essay, international bestselling humor writer David Sedaris shares the rewards of a book tour and his devoted readers’ worst-kept secrets....

When fourteen-year-old Lamya H realizes she has a crush on her teacher—her female teacher—she covers up her attraction, an attraction she can’t yet name, by playing up her roles as overachiever and class clown.

Ross Gay’s The Book of Delights is a genre-defying collection of essays that record the small joys that occurred in one year, from birthday to birthday, and that we often overlook in our busy lives....

"Government, like Circe, turns men into swine," David Mamet writes in his latest political tour de force. Prepare to be challenged, enlightened, and entertained by The Disenlightenment as Mamet dissects the modern world with enthusiasm, wisdom, and lots of references to movies about the mafia. Once a stalwart of liberal thought, Mamet now turns his penetrating gaze on the cultural milieu that nurtured his artistic growth, revealing how America's elites have twisted our institutions into tools of manipulation.

The ultrarich hold more of America’s wealth than they did in the heyday of the Carnegies and Rockefellers. Here, Evan Osnos’s incisive reportage yields an unforgettable portrait of the tactics and obsessions driving this new Gilded Age, in which superyachts, luxury bunkers, elite tax dodges, and a torrent of political donations bespeak staggering disparities of wealth and power. With deft storytelling and meticulous reporting, this is a book about the indulgences, incentives, and psychological distortions that define our economic age.

Le Guin’s sharp and witty voice is on full display in this collection of twenty-four essays, revised by the author a decade after its initial publication in 1979. The collection covers a wide range of topics and Le Guin’s origins as a writer, her advocacy for science fiction and fantasy as mediums for true literary exploration, the writing of her own major works such as A Wizard of Earthsea and The Left Hand of Darkness, and her role as a public intellectual and educator.

A critic explores the paradox of finding community in “the dozens” while grieving. A violent town ritual causes an all-too-familiar moral panic. An email thread between friends on why we need an updated Green Book but for public toilets. All across the nation, “Karens” become illegal overnight. These are just a few of the hilarious worlds contained in Damon Young’s groundbreaking anthology featuring the best, funniest, and Blackest essays, short stories, letters, and rants.

In A Room of One’s Own, Virginia Woolf’s classic six-part essay, the iconic Modernist writer takes on the misogyny of writing, publishing, and creativity in her time. Through the imagined sister of William Shakespeare, who in her argument possesses the same talent and intellect as the famous playwright, Woolf lays out the fundamental truth that one requires room to express creativity and time to explore and see it through. Genius unexpressed is genius nonetheless, and had Shakespeare’s sister the means to make her own art, she would have had the same lasting legacy as her brother.

元朝日新聞の記者が定年後，バルセロナで豆腐店を開業した．修業の日々，異国での苦労，新しい出会いと交流，ヨーロッパから見た日本の姿──ジャーナリストならではの洞察力で，「蛮勇」のカミさんと二人三脚の日々を綴った小気味よいエッセイ．

The Person Sitting in Darkness by Mark Twain is a searing political satire that exposes the hypocrisy and brutality of imperialism at the turn of the 20th century. With his signature wit and razor-sharp critique, Twain challenges the moral justifications used by Western powers—especially the United States—in their global conquests.

In What Water Holds, a series of lyrical essays first shared at Oregon’s FisherPoets Gathering, Tele examines questions of equity, identity, community, the changing climate, and sustainability with loving, detailed attention, revealing the complexities within their many shades of gray.

1000 Ideas for Writers: Spark your next story—one idea at a time 🖋️ A massive collection of 1000 unique prompts to spark fresh stories in any genre. 🎭 Character concepts and personality quirks to build unforgettable protagonists and villains. 🌍 Worldbuilding jumpstarts to help you create immersive settings, cultures, and histories. 🧩 Plot twists and surprise endings that add tension, drama, and excitement to your narratives. 💬 Dialogue starters and scene openers to break writer’s block and get your characters talking. 🔮 Genre-specific sections for fantasy, sci-fi, ...

Un retrato perspicaz y atrevido de la masculinidad contemporánea. Cualquier feminista que haya dialogado ante el público sobre las frustraciones y los lastres innatos a la aventura de ser mujer habrá tenido que enfrentarse alguna vez a la pregunta: «¿Y los hombres qué?». Y si la feminista en cuestión lleva años intentando convencer a ese público de que las preocupaciones de ambos sexos son cosas muy distintas, su respuesta automática, muy probablemente, habrá sido algo como: «¿Por qué me sacan este tema? ¡Yo soy feminista! ¡Mi especialidad son las mujeres! No me ocupo de… los otros».

Este libro está hecho de errores que no se corrigieron a tiempo. Errores reales, documentados, que empezaron con una palabra mal traducida y terminaron generando consecuencias inesperadas: una ciudad bombardeada, un diagnóstico devastador, un discurso presidencial incomprendido, una estatua que representa algo que el texto nunca dijo. En todos los casos, lo que falló fue la traducción. No el contenido, no la intención, sino la forma de decirlo en otro idioma. Cada capítulo reconstruye uno de esos errores con precisión y sin adornos. No hay dramatismo artificial ni moralejas. Solo ...

Desde mediados del siglo XX, la esperanza de vida ha aumentado en occidente de veinte a treinta años, lo que equivale a toda una existencia en el siglo XVII. Así pues, al llegar a los cincuenta años, experimentamos una suerte de suspensión entre la madurez y la vejez, un intervalo en el que la brevedad de la vida realmente comienza, mientras nos planteamos las grandes cuestiones de nuestra condición.

De Buenos Aires à Caracas, François-Henri Désérable nous embarque dans une formidable traversée de l’Amérique du Sud. Cinq mois à moto, en stop, en bateau, avec une seule contrainte : emprunter l’itinéraire qui fut celui d’Alberto Granado et d’Ernesto « Che » Guevara, lors du fameux voyage à motocyclette, soixante-cinq ans plus tôt.

L'auteur interprète lui-même ce récit de voyage et nous en restitue toute sa saveur.

After a decade of teaching writing and literature at the college level, Gideon Rappaport taught high school English for thirty-two years, during which time he was also teaching adult education classes, working as a theatrical dramaturge, and writing. This volume collects in Part I the chapel talks and speeches he gave at the two high schools at which he taught, in Part II his book and movie reviews, and in Part III other writings, including letters to former students and weblog posts.

« Mes grands-parents ont grandi à l’Est de l’Europe, dans des pays de grands froids. Ils ont connu le chaos, les persécutions et l’exil. Plus qu’un désir, une fascination, la France fut pour eux une intuition. Même si tout cela m’est inconnu, cela ne m’est pas étranger. Je porte en moi leurs racines et aujourd’hui, sans que je les convoque, elles se rappellent à moi. ».