Tales of an Urban Critic: A Search for the Soul of Cities and Self

By Michael J. Crosbie6 min read

Sam Kaplan Hall recounts his wide-ranging life in a new memoir that contains more than a few great personal stories.

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On Redeeming Freud

The inspiration to write a novel or story usually comes to me as a vague inkling that some image, situation, or statement (often a paradox) might open a doorway to a world rich in emotional and philosophical mystery. But in

Stephen O'ConnorJun 17, 2026

Literary Hub

Lit Hub Daily: June 17, 2026

Why Robert W. Service’s “The Cremation of Sam McGee” is a good poem for bad dads. | Lit Hub Craft Aaron Boehmer considers the future of ethnic studies and academia in crisis: “While no protest, demonstration, or amount of organizing can

Lit Hub DailyJun 17, 2026

Public Books

Who Benefits from Distorting American Studies?

“There is a movement undermining, constraining, and eradicating those who document, understand, and name the experiences of systematically marginalized communities in US history.” The post Who Benefits from Distorting American Studies? appeared first on Public Books.

Morgan BarryJun 17, 2026

The Paris Review

Announcing Our Summer Issue

Featuring interviews with Harryette Mullen and Yan Lianke, prose by Lucy Ellmann and Chigozie Obioma, poetry by Frederick Seidel, and a cover by Alex Da Corte.

Emily StokesJun 16, 2026

Public Books

Edward Said, My Grandfather, and the Problem of Home

“Said's ‘Reflections on Exile’ summoned to mind the only 7 words my grandfather ever said to me about Ireland, where he had cousins he never knew: ‘I don’t think I’ll go back there.’” The post Edward Said, My Grandfather, and the Problem of Home appeared first on Public Books.

Morgan BarryJun 16, 2026

The Public Domain Review

Louis Pope Gratacap, A Curator in Lost Worlds

Arguably the first work of fiction to feature a *Tyrannosaurus rex*, Louis Pope Gratacap’s *The New Northland* (1915) is at once kaleidoscopic, mischievous, fascinating — and exhausting. Richard Fallon explores this “lost world” novel, finding a work as interested in cutting-edge science as it was in paying dues to its generic precursors.

Jun 17, 2026