When the Park Ranger Was Not Your Friend
Early 20th century National Park Service Rangers were a notoriously rough-and-tumble lot.
Ten Poems about Travel
Poetry about all kinds of travel—from grand adventures to family vacations—by Elizabeth Bishop, Rita Dove, and more.
When Harriet Beecher Stowe and George Eliot Were Penpals
These 19th-century novelists might seem to have little in common. But for 11 years they wrote each other letters, forging an unusual literary friendship.
The Man Who Invented Modern Infection Control
He's hailed as the "father of infection control" and the "savior of mothers," but the truth about Ignaz Semmelweis is more complicated than that.
The Medieval Castle That Pranked Its Visitors
At Hesdin, in France, the idyllic beauty of the grounds met the sadistic slapstick of the castle’s “engines of amusement.”
Expecting the Unexpected: Researching Florence in Ecstasy
Debut novelist Jessie Chaffee on how she researched her critically-acclaimed new novel Florence in Ecstasy, with a little help from JSTOR.
W.B. Yeats Loved Tarot Cards
The august Irish poet was once a member of a secret occult order called The Hermetic Society of the Golden Dawn. He was also an avid student of the Tarot.
Harry Potter, the Arthurian Romance
Perhaps the Harry Potter stories are so potent because they rework the iconic hero stories of medieval French Arthurian romances.
The Bright Future of Bangladesh: Researching The Storm
An interview with Arif Anwar, whose debut novel covers sixty years of Bengali history in five love stories.
Clare Boothe Luce, the Conservative Politician Who Wrote an All-Female Play
Clare Boothe Luce was a socialite, an editor, a feminist playwright, a devout Roman Catholic, a Republican Congresswoman, an early LSD user, an ambassador, and, believe it or not, more.