The Billionaire, the Psychedelics and the Best-Selling Memoir

Popping into Bluesky after a social media respite to bring you this amazing story that Liz Egan and Katie Rosman have been working on for months.

I almost screamed when I got to the Audra graf at the end. "Then she turned to the window and sighed, 'What a beautiful day.'"

I'm sure it's a Memorial Day thing, but there have been fighter jets screaming over the house for the last 15 minutes (I live in the Hudson Valley). It's just an instant flashback to 9/11 and I need it to stop.

The Essential Terry Pratchett

Been waiting for @oliviawaite.com’s take on Terry Pratchett’s body of work and here it is!

These 4 People Had Never Met. Now They’re on a Road Trip to Find Dad.

I'm a fan of Kevin Wilson's quirky family dramas, so this one's on my to-read list.

A New Biography of Mark Twain Doesn’t Have Much of What Made Him Great

Good morning! A slew of new books coming out today. FIrst up is Ron Chernow's long-awaited biography of Mark Twain. (Spoiler alert: Our critic Dwight Garner really, really doesn't like it.)

‘James’ Won the Pulitzer, but Not Without Complications

"But it turns out that 'James' was not the top pick among the Pulitzer’s five fiction jury members. It wasn’t even in the top three, according to three people with knowledge of the process, who were not authorized to speak about the confidential deliberations."

Poetry Challenge Day 2: Learning a Poem's Rhythm Today, we help you pay attention to the sound and feel of this week’s poem. Play our game to see how much you’ve already learned.

Day 2 of our poetry challenge!

You don't even need to be a subscriber to read these! You just need to have registered with the Times, and you get a certain number of free articles every month.

Poetry Challenge: Memorize ‘Recuerdo’ by Edna St. Vincent Millay Starting today, we’ll have a week of games, videos and essays to help you along the way. First up: readings by Ina Garten, Ethan Hawke and Ada Limón.

Why memorize a poem? As A.O. Scott writes, "At a time when we are flooded with texts, rants and A.I. slop, a poem occupies a quieter, less commodified corner of your consciousness. It’s a flower in the windowbox of your mind."

If you're a registered reader, there isn't a paywall.

Poetry Challenge: Memorize ‘Recuerdo’ by Edna St. Vincent Millay Starting today, we’ll have a week of games, videos and essays to help you along the way. First up: readings by Ina Garten, Ethan Hawke and Ada Limón.

Join us at the Book Review as we embark on a week-long voyage to help you memorize a poem — something to fill the soul and focus the mind.

is there still a used book store?

Hegseth Said to Have Shared Attack Details in Second Signal Chat The defense secretary sent sensitive information about strikes in Yemen to an encrypted group chat that included his wife and brother, people familiar with the matter said.

"Mr. Hegseth’s aides had warned him a day or two before the Yemen strikes not to discuss such sensitive operational details in his Signal group chat ... It was unclear how Mr. Hegseth ... responded to those warnings."

I get a lot of yellow-bellied sapsuckers in the yard, too, though they would never come to a feeder.

This is a small, angry looking black and white bird perched on a birdfeeder.

In the winter I have a suction-cup suet feeder attached to one of my kitchen windows, and the downy and hairy woodpeckers love it.

downy woodpecker

Felt good to laugh.

I go back and forth between listlessly scrolling online, paging through the last 6 months of the New Yorker, and trying — and failing — to read a book.

You did BOTH at the same time???

Five days out from a knee replacement, I think I might live after all. This is ROUGH.

Book Review: ‘The Living Mountain,’ by Nan Shepherd (Gift Article) Nan Shepherd’s meditative book on the great outdoors is an inspiring guide to stepping away from comforts and routine.

"I can recognize the ptarmigan’s plumage and the petals of St. John’s wort from her descriptions, without the aid of a single image," Sadie Stein writes. "The smell of sawed pine is 'like strawberry jam on the boil, but with a tang that tautens the membranes of nose and throat.'"

The Best Fantasy Novels to Read Right Now Whether you're looking for a classic or the latest and greatest, start here.

Our latest project at the Book Review — a curated page of fantasy novel recommendations — is live. Maybe reading a fantasy novel is just the ticket right now!

The Essential Tanith Lee The eclectic, prolific author wrote more than 90 novels — primarily fantasy and science fiction, but also horror, erotica, mysteries and historical fiction. If you’ve never read her work, here’s where...

If you've never read anything by Tanith Lee, Silvia Moreno-Garcia knows where you should start.

How “The Great Gatsby” Took Over Pop Culture F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel turns 100 this year. What does its hero tell us about how we see ourselves?

"And so we beat on, boats against the current, borne ceaselessly back into a book that its author considered calling 'Trimalchio in West Egg,'" Tony Scott writes. "Would we still be talking about it if he had?

"But he called it 'The Great Gatsby' and we are."

erik.

A Hare, a Fox, an Owl, a Snail: Animal Memoirs Are Going Wild Books about writers’ dogs and cats are a literary staple. Now there’s a booming subset of memoirs about writers’ relationships with less domestic creatures.

Has anyone here besides me read — and loved — Chloe Dalton's "Raising Hare"?

Life Isn’t Perfect. But This Adrienne Rich Poem Might Be. “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers,” by Adrienne Rich, is a blazing portrait of an artist and her work. Our critic A.O. Scott admires its craft — and its wildness.

If you need a moment of beauty and calm this morning, dip into Tony Scott's latest poetry close read.

Classic Private-Eye Detective Novels: A Starter Pack Our crime columnist recommends books starring hard-boiled investigators who are ready to travel down the meanest streets to root out the darkest truths.

We’ve published a few of what we’re calling “starter packs” this year, and today we’ve got another: classic private-eye detective novels, brought to you by our wonderful crime fiction columnist @sarahweinman.com.

J.F.K., Blown Away, What Else Do I Have to Say? Why the newly released documents won’t put out the fire.

"Generalized mistrust of authority and expertise turns us into epistemological free agents," A.O. Scott writes. "We’re just asking questions, doing our own search engine-optimized investigations, huddling in ad hoc Warren Commissions of our own devising."