To better understand the Russia-Ukraine crisis, we have put together a list of the most relevant books that shed light on the history, socio-economic and political relations of these two neighboring countries as well as titles that provide additional context to the historical and evolving war tactics at play. “An
Today, economic sanctions are generally regarded as an alternative to war. But for most people in the interwar period, the economic weapon was the very essence of total war. The initial intention behind creating the economic weapon was not to use it–economic sanctions were intended to be a form of
Earnestine Jenkins– My new book, Black Artists in America: from the Great Depression to Civil Rights, (which accompanies an exhibition of the same name that was on view at the Dixon Galleries and Gardens in Memphis, Tennessee from October 17, 2021 until January 2, 2022) explores the work of African
Earlier this year, Yale University Press published the excerpt below from The Orphanage by Serhiy Zhadan, translated from the Ukrainian by Reilly Costigan-Humes and Isaac Stackhouse Wheeler. We are revisiting this piece today to shed light on the continued and escalating tensions in the region. Recalling the brutal landscape of The Road and the
Yesterday, Fred R. Shapiro’s list of the Ten Most Notable Quotes of the Year was published by the Associated Press. As a compliment to that piece, we are revisiting this article from September that highlights popular misquotations corrected by Shapiro in The New Yale Book of Quotations. Fred R. Shapiro—
Sophus Helle— “Gilgamesh is tremendous!” the poet Rainer Maria Rilke exclaimed in 1916. “I hold it to be the greatest thing a person can experience.” Many modern readers have shared Rilke’s enthusiasm for the epic. Gilgamesh will soon celebrate the 150th anniversary of its rediscovery in 1872, and since then
Paul Freedman— When I was asked to consider writing Why Food Matters, I was told that this was not supposed to be an introduction to the topic of food, but rather my reasoned opinion—even a manifesto about the significance of the subject, in keeping with the intent of the Yale
Cole Roskam– Recent news offers a reminder of the complex and challenging dynamics at work in U.S.-China relations. No relationship is more important to the future of our planet, and yet on issues ranging from climate change to COVID-19 to global trade to human rights, American and Chinese officials seem
In this episode of our podcast, we talk with The Met’s Stephanie D’Alessandro and Tate Modern’s Matthew Gale, who are co-curators of the exhibition (and co-editors of the book) Surrealism Beyond Borders. The exhibition is currently on view at The Met, and will travel to Tate Modern in Febraury 2022.