Author: British Day

Sharanya Deepak| Longreads | June 22, 2023 | 19 minutes (5,246 words) Two years ago, I made myself a meal I often think about. It was an iteration of a ragù recipe, one I had pretended to learn watching my friend Isacco cook for me in Schaerbeek, the Brussels neighborhood where we both then lived. Isacco’s ragù was one of my favorite meals in the world, but I hadn’t learned anything as he stood over his pot and enunciated every single word of the recipe with special emphasis. When Isacco gave me instructions, I nodded amicably like a trained tourist,…

What happens when the only way to ensure the survival of the people you love the most is to leave them behind? That’s a choice no one should have to make, and yet it is the dilemma of overseas workers everywhere, no less so than in the Philippines, which exports about a fourth of the world’s 11.5 million migrant domestic workers, a predominantly female army of nannies, maids, and cooks. A significant percentage of these women are mothers separated from their own kids while caring for the children of others, sending home remittances and boxes of chocolate, Spam, and other…

American literature has lost another giant with today’s news of Cormac McCarthy’s death at the age of 89. Like many giants, McCarthy inspired a kind of journalism cottage industry. His stylistic and creative influence influenced countless other writers, many of whom felt motivated to acknowledge that influence in their own writings. Below is a quintet of such works. long lead The editor has read and enjoyed it over the years. Get Longreads Top 5 Emails Start your weekend off right with the week’s best reads, handpicked by Longreads editors and delivered to your inbox every Friday morning. all Subscribe for…

Adam Reiner | Longreads | June 13, 2023 | 4,992 words (17 minutes) The hospital room is full of strangers. I do my best not to look worried and take a deep breath, inhaling the antiseptic odor that permeates the air—a sterile cologne of surgical masks, latex gloves, and industrial-grade cleaning solvents. Worry is the enemy of hope, and cancer spreads faster in the crevices where hope slips through. My uncle Robert is propped upright in the hospital bed in the center of the room, leaning limply to one side like a resting marionette, awake, but looking like he hasn’t…

Get Longreads Top 5 Emails Start your weekend off right with the week’s best reads, handpicked by Longreads editors and delivered to your inbox every Friday morning. all Subscribe for daily updates and get our picks. Investigating a heinous (and despicable) crime. Let’s take a look into the enthusiastic world of cheerleading. A visit to the world’s creepiest motel. An empathetic perspective on assisted dying. And the real global cost of your beloved cat. This week’s favorites handpicked by our editors. Andy Mannix | Star Tribune | June 2, 2023 | 10,330 words There is a warning at the beginning…

Emily Latimer | Longreads | June 6, 2023 | 4,358 words (15 minutes) It’s March in Florida, and I’m walking around Hogsmeade village in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando. It’s a Christmas card come to life—a picturesque setting with charming storefronts, cobbled streets, and faux snow-capped brick buildings with crooked chimneys. A train conductor dressed in a brown suit greets me in a (probably fake) British accent. Behind him, excited park-goers bustle in and out of a sweet shop, clutching plastic cups of Butterbeer. My friends and I snap pictures of the village’s arched roofs, marveling at…

Anne P. Beatty | Longreads | June 2023 | 4,667 words (17 minutes) The street divides us, one group of protesters on one sidewalk, one on the other. Two sets of signs: Masks are child abuse, Masks keep our children safe. No CRT in our schools, Teach our children the truth! You work for us, We support our teachers. A man with a clipboard guards the plate-glass double doors of the building. He knows our numbers and tells us when we’re allowed inside to speak.  I’m looking at all these signs as I think about what I’ll say, ideas I’ve…

As I write this, there are two episodes left. Soon, there will be none. Although Jesse Armstrong’s decision to end Succession with its fourth season is doubtless wise — it’s a relief to know the show won’t dwindle past its sell-by date like so many other cultural behemoths — the thought of no more new installments to feverishly anticipate, and then devour, remains a deeply depressing one. It’s in the very nature of episodic television, where you watch a group of characters face a distinct set of challenges week after week, year after year, that you come to care about…

Get Longreads Top 5 Emails Start your weekend off right with the week’s best reads, handpicked by Longreads editors and delivered to your inbox every Friday morning. all Subscribe for daily updates and get our picks. The former plantation has been transformed into a source of pride. Freedom for stray dogs. The cost of gambling addiction is high. The tense lives of South African copper thieves. And the elated profile of a rock icon. This week’s favorites handpicked by our editors. 1. Take back North Carolina plantations Cynthia R. Greenlee | Garden & Guns | April 24, 2023 | 3,050…

Get Longreads Top 5 Emails Start your weekend off right with the week’s best reads, handpicked by Longreads editors and delivered to your inbox every Friday morning. all Subscribe for daily updates and get our picks. A year of grief for a mother. An angry afternoon. Take a peek into the life of a celebrity ghostwriter. Witness to the emigration of the monarch. The friendship behind the arrival of sushi in the U.S. This week’s favorite read (plus a little pickled ginger after dinner). Selected from the editor’s selections. 1. Amor Eterno Skip Hollandsworth | Texas Monthly | May 8,…