Books & Literary Life

Literary criticism, author interviews, and book culture from within and beyond Harvard.

A whimsical illustration of a man balancing on a rooftop edge, wearing a suit and glasses.

The Artist Edward Gorey—and Pets—at Harvard

Winter exhibits at Houghton Library   

by Nell Porter-Brown

Portrait photograph of mathematician and author Francis Su

Francis Su, “Mathematics for Human Flourishing,” review by Jacob Barandes

Teaching and learning math as a human endeavor

by Jacob Barandes

Cozy Map Room Tea Lounge with books, bar, and vaulted ceiling

The Map Room Tea Lounge at BPL

The Boston Public Library’s cozy winter hideout

by Nell Porter-Brown

Book cover for "The Don't Represent Us"

Lawrence Lessig Delivers a Prescription for Reforming American Democracy

How to reform voting and elections in the United States to create a representative democracy

by Jonathan Shaw

Photograph of Jimmy Hoffa and Chuckie O’Brien near the federal courthouse, March 1, 1964

Excerpt from Jack Goldsmith, “In Hoffa’s Shadow”

A new look at “one of the greatest unsolved crimes in American history”

Photograph of worker between two enormously high stacked bookshelves at the Harvard Depository

Excerpt from “What We Talk About When We Talk about Books” by Leah Price

A visit to the Harvard Depository

An image of branching red seaweed against a dark-blue background

Recent books with Harvard connections

Recent books with Harvard connections

Photograph of President Donald Trump and Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio

Lincoln Caplan reviews “When Should Law Forgive?” by Martha Minow

…and don’t always forgive

by Lincoln Caplan

Correspondence on not-so-famous lost words

Correspondence on not-so-famous lost words

Photograph of David Damrosch

David Damrosch promotes world literature

David Damrosch’s literary global reach

by Spencer Lee Lenfield

Painted portrait of Adella Hunt Logan

Adella Hunt Logan

Brief life of a rebellious black suffragist: 1863-1915

by Adele Logan Ale...