Category Archives: New Books

Hugh Trevor-Roper’s erudition was wide-ranging, his curiosity endless, his political outlook Whiggish, his loathing of others bottomless… more»

Galileo, Newton, Darwin, Heisenberg: Scientific progress has always required heroic minds, not necessarily heroic morals. Adam Gopnik elaborates.. more»

The popularity of Tennyson’s work was not unequivocally good news for someone whose métier was founded on the opposite of success… more»

Gérard de Villiers’s best-selling espionage thrillers also serve as intelligence drop boxes for spy agencies around the world… more»

Far from being “plagued by a void of moral purpose,” Yale labors under an excess of the same – that purpose being the pursuit of perfection… more»

What keeps a Wodehouse work imperishable? “Making the thing frankly a fairy story,” he said, “and ignoring real life altogether.” And so he did… more»

The test of an educational practice is its power to enable a human being to realize his own promise in a constructive way. Social studies fails… more»

Sports’ prominence with the apolitical masses makes them an effective medium for political messages. But what’s a fan to do?… more»

Step aside, Stravinsky. Music in the 20th century belonged to urbane, symphonic jazz. More specifically, it belonged to Duke Ellington… more»

W.S. Merwin’s translations of Horace and Apollinaire aren’t as faithful as could be. It’s the sound of the language he’s after, not the sense… more»