The Time is Right for a ‘Great Books’ Revival
To build a better world in the age of AI, students need grounding in indispensable ideas.
Books
Introducing The Atlantic’s expanded books coverage: essays, criticism, fiction, poetry, and recommendations from our writers and editors
He Was Hugely Influential. He Also Had a Foolish Streak.
A recent biography of the writer John Berger reminds us about his hefty influence—and how he could be blinkered by his convictions.
Forget Grit
Even the luminaries of the self-help genre have begun to recognize how little in life we can actually control.
How American Girl Doll Lost Its Way
At 40, the brand faces a midlife crisis.
Democrats Are Sounding More Like Republicans
Why politicians are betting on ever more moralizing language
What To Read
See All/media/img/mt/2026/10/ezgif_optimized/original.gif)
50 Unforgettable Love Stories
Centuries of joyous, tragic, tantalizing, enduring fiction
Six Hard-to-Find Books Worth Reading
These titles are no longer fashionable, if they ever were—but should you manage to read one, you might love it.
What to Read to Wake Up Your Brain
These books can ease readers into a season of work and hard thinking.
/media/img/mt/2026/05/Animation_The_Atlantic_A_Final_HP/original.gif)
Six Books That Take You to Space
You won’t even have to leave your couch.
Newsletter
The Books Briefing
Our culture editors’ weekly guide to the best in books.
Subject to The Atlantic's Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions
Fiction
See All
The Guardians
A short story
Disunion
A short story
I Heard You Singing
A short story
The Wisdom of Holden Caulfield
Beneath all the alienation, The Catcher in the Rye, which turns 75 this year, has a surprisingly hopeful—and ethical—outlook.
For Ibram X. Kendi, It’s Nazis All the Way Down
His new book describes the “Great Replacement” theory as a convoluted plot, but fails to explain why it appeals to people in the first place.
How Everest Has Changed Since Into Thin Air
Scaling the world’s highest mountain is a very different experience than it was when I climbed it.
Atlantic Reads: How to Be a Dissident With Gal Beckerman
The Atlantic staff writer Gal Beckerman and podcast host Adam Harris discuss Beckerman’s new book, How to Be a Dissident.
An Unexpected Type of Beach Read
Take pleasure in the mismatch between dangerous tales and leisurely environs.
Seven Death-Defying Books for the Adventurous Reader
These titles will spirit you to some of the planet’s wildest landscapes, without making you leave your armchair.
Atlantic Reads: Screen People With Megan Garber
Staff writer Megan Garber and Adrienne LaFrance, The Atlantic’s executive editor, discuss Garber’s new book, Screen People: How We Entertained Ourselves Into a State of Emergency.
The Lost Idealism of Heartland Rock
The genre of Bob Seger and John Mellencamp reached across the ideological spectrum in a way that seems unimaginable today.
The Books That Take Revenge, Centuries Later
A new history of the Red Scare prompts the question: Does literature still have enough influence to bring down the powerful?
