The Business of the Romance Novel
How romance novels—despite their decided lack of cultural clout—became big business for the publishing industry.
Germany’s Real-Life “Swing Kids”
Rebellious teenagers thumbed their noses at Hitler with jazz music, wild dancing, and the greeting “Swing Heil.” But how serious was their resistance?
How American Artists Have Portrayed Haiti
In the early 20th century, African American artists created work that expressed solidarity with Haiti--whether they had been there or not.
When Jazz Was a Public Health Crisis
In the 1920s, jazz music was thought to cause physical illness or even disability.
Socialist Sci-Fi Reimagined the Future
The 1960 East German film The Silent Star provided a significant cautionary tale for the Cold War era.
Asian Families, the RAND Book, and Science Fiction
New books and scholarship from Stanford University Press, University of Minnesota, and MIT Press.
A Decades-in-the-Making Artwork in a Dormant Volcano
James Turrell is building an observatory that uses the human eye instead of optical instruments. It may soon be open to the public for the first time.
The Silkwomen of Medieval London
A group of skilled women ran the silk-making industry in 15th century London. So why didn't they protect their workers' rights by forming a guild?
This British Suffragist Used Her Art for Activism
Sylvia Pankhurst gave up painting to focus on suffrage and anti-colonialism activism, but she continued to use her design sense throughout her career.