Ladies of the ’80s
How Madonna, Grace Jones, Joan Jett, Whitney Houston, and their contemporaries broke the stodgy musical mold of the ’60s and ’70s to inspire generations of women to pick up an instrument and learn to play music.
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Longreads features
Black and Blue in Cleveland
Both of Wilbert L. Cooper’s parents were cops. In this excerpt from his memoir, Cooper recounts how his mother got into the force—and what the department did to try to keep her out.
Bucking Expectations: A Conversation with Rachel Hartigan
Oh, the places you’ll go when you say yes.
Speaking for the Dead
A New York Times veteran considers the art of the obituary and how words give shape to legacies.
Magical Mystery Toads
The long, tangled, and mostly wrong history of the psychedelic toad.
You and Me and QVC
How a home shopping channel became the soundtrack to a friendship.
How Reporting Creates Change: A Conversation with Pamela Colloff
Writing is always going to be hard. Here’s why the struggle is worth it.
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Weekly Top 5
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Featuring stories from Rachel Aviv, Hrishikesh Hirway, David Kushner, Claire L. Evans, and Eliran Arazi
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Showcasing stories from Andrew Fedorov, Shayla Love, Malcolm Johnston, Erin Somers, and Chris Stanton.
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Recommending stories from Emi Nietfeld, Brendan Borrell, Boyce Upholt, Fernando Pinho, and Vann R. Newkirk II.
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Learn to Love Your Search Results Again.
Introducing the Longreads Story Recommender.
The Longreads questionnaire
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring Jaya Saxena
The former Eater correspondent has a new home—and a full plate. Here, she talks about growing up in NYC, favorite meals, and memorable reads.
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring Kimon de Greef
The Ego Trip author on the sea, the pull of South Africa, and how his ecology background shapes the stories he tells.
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring s.e. smith
The All My Dead Cats and Other Losses author and Flytrap co-founder on grief, breaking and fixing things, and Alice Wong.
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Excerpts from The Atavist Magazine, our sister publication
Secrets of the Atomic City
“For decades, workers at a nuclear facility in Kentucky were exposed to dangerous levels of radiation. Management assured them nothing was wrong. Then four friends risked everything to reveal the truth.”
God’s Children
The Kerrs were devoted to one another and to their faith. But when one of their own rejected modern medicine, they faced a dire question: What if her children ever needed a doctor to save their lives?
The Fugitive Childhood of a Cocaine Smuggler’s Daughters
“When their parents ripped two young sisters from their privileged lives, gave them fake names, and took them on the lam, they thought it was because their father was in trouble with the IRS. It would be years before they learned the truth about his life of crime.”
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Longreads reading lists
Here’s the Scoop: A Reading List on Ice Cream
Seven stories that celebrate the surprising influence of a humble dessert.
Constructions, Concoctions, Conjurations: A Reading List on the Curious World of Conlangs
Making stuff up is harder, stranger, and occasionally more dangerous than it looks. Seven stories that explore the world of constructed languages.
Daylight Savings Time: A (Beach) Reading List for the Lighthearted
It’s summer, people. Let’s enjoy a little bit of levity.
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