LongReads Round-Up Volume Thirteen (aka The One All About Girls)

#Crime

Is there a scientific cure to pedophilia? http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/01/14/130114fa_fact_aviv?currentPage=all

#Development

Jared Diamond reviews Why Nations Fail, surveying economic policies, centralized governments, and natural resources along the way: http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2012/jun/07/what-makes-countries-rich-or-poor/?pagination=false

#Feminism #Literature

1993 article by Deborah Tannen about "marked" and "unmarked" in literature, in that to be female is to always be marked or derivative of the norm, which is male. Sadly, Tannen misses the mark (no pun intended) in how this also relates to intersectional forms of oppression such as race or sexualty. http://www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/tannend/nyt062093.htm

An argument that there is still a need and purpose for female-centric anthologies of literature, and other specially designated spaces: http://humanities.uchicago.edu/orgs/review/CR_532_Spahr_Young.pdf

#Health

Two part investigation into the troubling trend in labiaplasty and cashing in on physical insecurities:
http://www.guernicamag.com/daily/kirsten-oregan-labiaplasty-part-i/
http://www.guernicamag.com/daily/kirsten-oregan-labiaplasty-part-ii/

Elizabeth Wurtzel, author of Prozac Nation, on mental health and self help, and being disillusioned with life: http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/01/elizabeth-wurtzel-on-self-help.html

Obligatory "how can I relate this to Girls" response article: http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/01/what-would-hannah-horvath-make-of-elizabeth-wurtzel.html

#Journalism

Catching up with former executive editor of GOOD on social media, and internet publications http://therumpus.net/2013/01/saturday-special-the-rumpus-catches-up-with-ann-friedman/

#Literature

This excellent interview with poet Megan Kaminski provokes a dialogue about women's place in the modern literary canon, and offers an abundance of further readings: http://www.themillions.com/2013/01/topographies-of-desire-the-millions-interviews-megan-kaminski.html

Ethics in reading literature in an ever-globalizing age: http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=1244&fulltext=1&media=#article-text-cutpoint

Interview with James Franco about his poetry chapbook and his literary endeavors in general: http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=1237&fulltext=1

Fan Girl interview with Margaret Atwood: http://therumpus.net/2013/01/the-sunday-rumpus-interview-margaret-atwood/

A series of links on New Narrative, modern female authors, and what is "women's literature," anyway:

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2010/08/all-the-sad-young-literary-women/61821/

http://nplusonemag.com/female-trouble

http://thenewinquiry.com/essays/the-semiautobiographers/

Hannah Horvath's bookshelf: http://www.themillions.com/2013/01/ten-books-to-read-now-that-hbos-girls-is-back.html

Celebrating the anniversary of literary theory text Exercises in Style, with a new edition:

http://therumpus.net/2013/01/exercises-in-style/ 

http://www.themillions.com/2011/09/staff-pick-exercises-in-style-by-raymond-queneau.html

Jeffrey Eugenide's advice to young writers, winners of the Whiting Award, and a response from The Millions:

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2012/12/jeffrey-eugenides-advice-to-young-writers.html 

http://www.themillions.com/2013/01/jeffrey-eugenidess-killer-advice.html

#Obituary

A round up of links after young internet and free access activist Aaron Swartz's suicide last month:

http://www.economist.com/news/obituary/21569674-aaron-swartz-computer-programmer-and-activist-committed-suicide-january-11th-aged-26-aaron

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/13/technology/aaron-swartz-internet-activist-dies-at-26.html?_r=0

http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2013/01/20/the-tragedy-of-aaron-swartz.html

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/why-did-the-justice-system-target-aaron-swartz-20130123

http://www.infodocket.com/2013/01/12/tragic-news-internet-activist-and-developer-aaron-swartz-dead-at-26/

#Religion

How the internet is shaping (and dissolving) fundamentalist religions: http://www.salon.com/2013/01/16/religion_may_not_survive_the_internet/

#Science

Rookie interviews Neil deGrasse Tyson, maintaing its position as coolest publication for girls in print or online:  http://rookiemag.com/2012/07/an-interview-with-neil-degrasse-tyson/ (I love when she asks, do you ever get really overwhelmed by the universe?)

#Sexuality

How the sexual revolution has developed since the 1980s: http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?id=1252

Growing up with Judy Blume: http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=1201&fulltext=1

#Technology

You've got a friend in the world wide web, the new hub of social activism, do-gooders, and Likers:  http://nymag.com/news/features/internet-nice-2012-11/index1.html

#Television

Girls is back, and so are all the articles about HBO's most talked about twenty minutes a week: http://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/lena-dunham-february-2013#_

Emily Nussbaum writing about Girls and the tradition of provocative young women in literature http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/television/2013/02/11/130211crte_television_nussbaum?currentPage=all

Elaine Blair on the (oft non-titilating) portrayal of sex on Girls last season: http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2012/jun/07/loves-lena-dunham/?pagination=false

#Travel

Ploughshare winning essay on living in Jerusalem and attempting to understand Israel/Palestine issues as an American: https://www.pshares.org/read/article-detail.cfm?intArticleID=9725&src=longreads

Three essays from poets living in Gaza: http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=1205&fulltext=1

LongReads Round-Up Volume Twelve

#Comics

Interview with the author of a historical account of Marvel Comics: http://www.theawl.com/2012/12/the-long-twisted-history-of-marvel-comics-a-talk-with-sean-howe

#Crime

Growing up with an adopted older brother and convicted murderer http://www.xojane.com/it-happened-to-me/larry-swartz-murderer-adopted

#Business

How Starbucks revolutionized coffee culture, and might be bringing the same popular oomf to tea http://www.themorningnews.org/article/a-spot-for-tea

How Walmart used bribes to get building permits in illegal zones n Mexico http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/18/business/walmart-bribes-teotihuacan.html?_r=0

Disney brand runs everything http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2012/05/09/500-disney-iger/

#Essay

Shelia Heti writing about why bother socializing http://www.sheilaheti.net/whygoout2.html

Emily Gould on "lady blogs," emotional women, and validity of said emotional women as writers http://www.emilymagazine.com/?p=837

The female writer's fear of being alone, the pursuit of solitude and self satisfaction outside of relationships http://thenewinquiry.com/essays/the-lonely-ones/

Making and keeping friends in late young adulthood http://thoughtcatalog.com/2012/faqs-re-friendship-in-your-20s/

Forgot just how much I love Rookie for a minute. Perennial goodie of an essay for the teenage girl inside of you http://rookiemag.com/2012/01/how-to-not-care-what-other-people-think-of-you/

#Fashion

Tavie Gevinson, child fashion blogger to culture pulse point (and masthead leader of Rookie) http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/09/20/100920fa_fact_widdicombe?currentPage=all

#Feminism

J. Jack Halberstam talks about the dissolution of traditional gender roles, and genders themselves, and how feminism needs to move beyond polarizing vagina/penis platforms http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=981&fulltext=1

After Volume Eleven’s n+1 takedown of The Atlantic, I read this piece by LA Review of Books entitled “Is The Atlantic Making Us Stupid?” talking again about gender issue/”women’s interest” pieces http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=918&fulltext=1

#Film

Interview with Mel Brooks http://www.avclub.com/articles/mel-brooks-on-how-to-play-hitler-and-how-he-almost,89843/

Interview with Corey Feldman http://www.avclub.com/articles/corey-feldman-on-child-actors-his-favorite-roles-a,89648/

#Health

On mental health, medical services responsibilities, and quality of life:

http://gawker.com/5968818/i-am-adam-lanzas-mother 

http://www.xojane.com/issues/a-response-to-i-am-adam-lanzas-mother-from-a-doctor-in-the-trenches-i-am-adam-lanzas-psychiatrist 

http://www.vice.com/read/the-right-to-die-is-the-right-to-live-0912348-v19n12?Contentpage=-1

Fertility trials and culturing the skills of waiting http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/6694/

#Language

A former DMV employee and self educated linguist endeavored to create the most precise and logical language ever http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/12/24/121224fa_fact_foer?currentPage=all

#Literature

Short fiction by Rebecca Schiff http://nplusonemag.com/men-against-violence

The opening lines of this interview with VS Naipaul are basically the best http://www.tnr.com/article/110946/vs-naipaul-the-arab-spring-authors-he-loathes-and-the-books-he-will-never-write#

Another great interview with Martin Amis http://www.vulture.com/2012/07/in-conversation-martin-amis.html

A historical literary moment, when the father of vampires met the father of American poetry http://www.neh.gov/humanities/2012/novemberdecember/feature/when-bram-met-walt

The Morning News finishes its year-long series on modern Russian Literature with this excerpt and interview with Mikhail Shishkin http://www.themorningnews.org/article/mikhail-shishkin

Review of Oprah: Gospel of an Icon that takes “followers of Oprah” to a new level  and explores the pseudo religious impact of Oprah in viewers’ lives.  http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?id=1142&fulltext=1

#Music

The fusion of rap music and traditional Mongolian music http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/witness/2012/10/2012103113231574635.html

Jay Zhttp://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/09/t-magazine/the-house-that-hova-built.html?_r=3&

Music round up that speaks to the soul http://rookiemag.com/2012/12/from-the-soul/

#Obituary

White girl privilege aside, I appreciate this piece by Lena Dunham http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2012/06/lena-dunham-remembers-nora-ephron.html

#Politics

How American tragedies affect presidencies (and how Obama reacts to tragedy) http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/12/17/a_president_we_can_believe_in

Interesting piece on the inside logistics that helped pass gay marriage bills in several states http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/12/the-gay-marriage-plot-inside-this-years-other-high-stakes-campaign/265865/?single_page=true

In a time where America is rife with gun control debates, a journalist steps behind the counter of a gun store http://www.gq.com/news-politics/big-issues/201209/gun-shopping-gq-september-2012

Ta-Nehesi Coates writing about race and the presidency, and the pressure of acceptable blackness http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/09/fear-of-a-black-president/309064/1/?single_page=true

Multiculturalism, liberalism, and questions of identity http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2012/nov/22/freedom-diversity-liberal-pentagram/?pagination=false

#Sexuality

Why Uganda's aggressive anti-gay laws have roots in American culture http://harpers.org/archive/2010/09/straight-mans-burden/?single=1

James Deen, America's sweetheart porn star  http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?id=1021&fulltext=1

Famous women talking about their first times http://rookiemag.com/2012/03/absolute-beginners/

Why you should never fake an orgasm (enjoyed the comment-versation about the heteronormative tone of the article as well) http://rookiemag.com/2012/02/a-real-good-time/

Attempts at online dating http://www.lrb.co.uk/v34/n20/emily-witt/diary

#Spirituality

Last month Rookie magazine's theme was Belief. A few of my favorite articles included building an altar, a conversation between atheists, and reconciling religion and feminism:

http://rookiemag.com/2012/12/anatomy-of-an-altar/http://rookiemag.com/2012/12/beyond-belief/http://rookiemag.com/2012/12/a-holy-allianc/

#Technology

How a Reddit query sparked a film treatment http://www.wired.com/underwire/2012/03/ff_reddit/

Forget cloud storage. Theoretical extraterrestrial storage is where its at. http://www.themorningnews.org/article/interstellar-hard-drive

Chemical weaponry developed in the Cold War http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/12/17/121217fa_fact_khatchadourian?currentPage=all

#Television

Sarah Nicole Prickett relates Alan Sorkin’s The Newsroom to the creeping fears of the fading “great American male” legacy http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/television/how-to-get-under-aaron-sorkins-skin-and-also-how-to-high-five-properly/article4363455/

LongReads Round-Up Volume Eight

#Art

Some trippy art for your Monday morning: http://www.comicsalliance.com/2012/11/03/llewellyn-mejia-draws-your-nightmares-on-peyote-art/

#Astrology

Evolutionary astrology: http://www.realitysandwich.com/evolutionary_astrology #reincarnation

Astrology and sexuality: http://www.realitysandwich.com/mars_neptune_orgasm_addiction_sharing_sexual_energies

Give in to Mercury in Retrograde this month http://galadarling.com/article/10-magical-ways-to-make-the-most-of-mercury-retrograde

#Booze

Presidential drinking habits: http://www.themorningnews.org/article/four-more-beers

50 American Gins: http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/american-gin-renaissance

#Comics

Interview with Glyn Dillon about his new graphic novel and small press publishing: http://www.tcj.com/the-now-of-glyn-an-interview-with-glyn-dillon/

Three interviews with Theo Ellsworth, author of Capacity and upcoming The Understanding Monster trilogy. His work is partly trippy surrealism, partly exploration of the artistic subconscious, partly reminiscent of my favorite Outsider artist, Adolf Wolfli. Amazing black and white pattern and texture work.

http://www.brokenfrontier.com/lowdown/p/detail/talking-dreams-with-theo-ellsworthhttp://www.tcj.com/the-theo-ellsworth-interview/http://www.newsarama.com/comics/understanding-monster-theo-ells.html

A new anthology of queer comics is coming out (pun TOTALLY intended) http://www.comicsalliance.com/2012/11/01/rediscovering-comics-queer-history-an-interview-with-no-straight-lines-editor-justin-hall/

Preview of an ongoing crowd funding project for the graphic novel Elysium, about a social media platform that lets you communicate with your dead loved ones (and causes the apocalypse) http://www.comicsalliance.com/2012/11/09/elysium-online-indiegogo-preview-crowd-funding-watch/

#Crime

The author was a hitchhiking teen and possibly escaped a serial killer http://www.gq.com/news-politics/newsmakers/201211/truck-stop-killer-gq-november-2012

Rhonda Roby works as a forensic scientist identifying the dead in cold cases, serial murders, and during 9/11 http://www.dmagazine.com/Home/D_Magazine/2012/November/Rhonda_Roby_Naming_the_Dead_at_Ground_Zero.aspx

#Design

Innovative design in the home of an architect http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2012/11/lessons-from-a-surprise-visit-to-richard-rogerss-house.html

#Development

A round up of critiques regarding journalist Nicholas Kristof and the Savior Identity: http://postwhoreamerica.com/nicholas-kristof-half-the-sky-all-the-credit/

Factory labor in Cambodia has all the trappings of unions but no outcomes: http://truth-out.org/news/item/8307-the-fashion-industrys-perfect-storm-collapsing-workers-and-hyperactive-buyers

Another critique of development and aid work that uplifts workers to “savior” status: http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the-white-savior-industrial-complex/254843/

How NGOs have failed Haiti: http://www.thenation.com/article/170929/ngo-republic-haiti

#Election

I love this fist pump of optimism after the 2012 elections http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/11/hippies-wander-into-the-lions-den-maul-lions/264921/

Talking about the white vote for Romney http://www.thenation.com/blog/171093/bad-news-about-white-people-romney-won-white-vote-almost-everywhere

Gifs of Karl Rove’s meltdown http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2012/11/time-karl-rove-took-fox-news-decision-desk/58777/

What a second Obama term means for the rest of the world http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-20233941

The GOP needs an accessible, moderate charmer to reestablish the party… but finding that seems unlikely http://www.tnr.com/blog/plank/109864/why-the-gop-needs%E2%80%94-wont-get%E2%80%94its-own-bill-clinton

#Fashion

Interview with the Rodarte sisters: http://www.vanityfair.com/style/2012/03/rodarte-201203

#Feminism

Roxanne Gay writes about being a bad feminist: http://www.vqronline.org/articles/2012/fall/gay-feminism

#Film

Could the internet have garnered cult support for the biggest film failure in history? http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/movies/2012/11/would-the-internet-have-rescued-heavens-gate.html

#Food

Hanging with Aziz Ansari and eating everything http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7776162/qa-parks-recreation-star-aziz-ansari-kanye-west-favorite-foods-more

The legend of the Burger in the West http://gearpatrol.com/2012/10/26/the-oral-history-of-in-n-out-burger/

Traveling to Sichuan to eat the best the region has to offer http://www.bonappetit.com/blogsandforums/blogs/badaily/2012/04/sichuan-travel-story.html

I’m a Ramen Hack Genius. This is for the neophytes: http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/03/ramen-hacks-30-easy-ways-to-upgrade-your-instant-noodles-japanese-what-to-do-with-ramen.html

#Health

David Sedaris goes to the dentist. That’s all you need: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/04/02/120402fa_fact_sedaris?currentPage=all #essay

Manipulating soldiers’ diets to fight off depression: http://www.eatingwell.com/print/15781?page=show #science

#Literature

The critical theory of the ghost in literature: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/jun/17/hauntology-critical

Excerpt from a new novel by Jennine Capo Crucet: http://www.guernicamag.com/fiction/magic-city-relic/

Interview with daytime lawyer/part-time author Charles Yu http://www.themorningnews.org/article/charles-yu

Charles Yu’s review of IQ84 by Haruki Murakami http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?id=17

Interview with John Sayles http://www.themillions.com/2011/10/robert-birnbaum-in-conversation-with-john-sayles.html

New short story by Alice Munro http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/nov/02/the-eye-alice-munro-short-story

The case for David Mitchell’s Black Swan Green to be taught as the new Catcher in the Rye http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2012/11/schools_should_replace_catcher_in_the_rye_with_black_swan_green.single.html

How publisher and literary taste maker Malcolm Cowley shaped New York http://www.vqronline.org/articles/1982/autumn/shi-malcolm-cowley/

Review of a new collection of Adrienne Rich’s poetry http://www.tnr.com/book/review/poetry-adrienne-rich-eavan-boland

#Religion

The frustrations of religious conservatism felt by those who share the religion http://www.guernicamag.com/daily/jennifer-sky-faith-and-politics-in-the-sunshine-state/

The monster of atheism might be “Gawd” http://www.realitysandwich.com/neo-atheism_demiurge

Our economic system needs to be spiritually restored: http://www.realitysandwich.com/waxing_sacred_economics_charles_eisenstein

An essay from the eighties about the rise of “feminist spirituality,” including goddess worship etc http://ww.utnereader.com/the-new-feminist-spirituality.aspx

Thinking about possession and writing: http://www.granta.com/Online-Only/Necessary-Daemons

Alexander Chee writes about Tarot http://www.themorningnews.org/article/the-querent

#Technology

Warren Ellis on living in the Science Fiction Condition http://www.theverge.com/2012/11/1/3569208/warren-ellis-futurism-new-aesthetic-social-media

Attempting to live on a self-sustaining, productive farm http://www.businessweek.com/printer/articles/79854-the-post-apocalypse-survival-machine-nerd-farm

#Travel

John Jeremiah Sullivan writes about conservative politics and Kentucky in this 2010 piece http://www.gq.com/news-politics/big-issues/201001/american-grotesque-john-jeremiah-sullivan-birthers?printable=true #politics

How the eighteen hundreds saw a rise in the panicked belief that the dead were rising http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/The-Great-New-England-Vampire-Panic-169791986.html?c=y&story=fullstory #folklore

Hiking Hawaii’s Big Island http://www.cntraveler.com/islands/2012/11/big-island-hawaii-hiking-adventure-landscapes-beaches-lava-fields

Essay by Vonnegut about the short-lived Kingdom of Biafra in Africa http://journeytoforever.org/rrlib/biafra.html

Living in the mining villages of Peru http://www.vqronline.org/articles/2012/fall/arana-dorado/ #feminism