Archive
Open Letters Monthly Archive Feature: Second Glance
Over time, the books of our youth make way for titles better suited to the grown-up readers we have become. But not all of them: YA or not, some books -- such as K. M. Peyton's Pennington trilogy -- deserve a lasting place on our shelves.
Read MoreJohn Ford's story of star-crossed lovers is bloodier than Shakespeare's and more heart-wrenching, too, for it's a tragedy of childhood, of innocence lost.
Read MoreThe Knight of the Burning Pestle began its theatrical run in1607—and concluded it almost immediately. But why? Colleen Shea explores the mysterious failure of this hilarious, satirical, meta-theatrical romp.
Read MoreHe may not have anything new to tell us today, but as Spencer Lenfield demonstrates, Gilbert Highet's friendly, engaging pedagogy is still rare enough to keep him relevant.
Read MoreLong before Hairpin and Jezebel, Jane Collier, under the influence of Jonathan Swift, was savagely satirizing women's ettiquette guides in her work An Essay on the Art of Ingeniously Tormenting. Chris R. Morgan revisits the caustic classic.
Read MoreHer merciless social scrutiny and crystal-perfect prose put Barbara Pym in the same league as Jane Austen -- and yet she languishes on the edge of obscurity. We offer a re-appraisal -- and a celebration.
Read MorePauline Kael is out of print today and perhaps known best for the enemies she made. But any immersion into her passionate, intelligent writing shows her to have been one of the best movie critics--or critic of any kind--of the past century.
Read MoreIn books such as "Live Alone and Like It" Marjorie Hillis preached independence and practical style to "live-aloner" working women of the 1930s and beyond
Read MoreIn this regular feature, Adam Golaski revisits Intelligent Dance (or “laptop”) Music, discovering unity and poise in a Squarepusher album which critics have short-sightedly misfiled.
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