the legacy of racism is one of a question buried, half answered, shamefully shoved under a rug to avoid uncomfortable feelings. but true growth comes from confronting that which disturbs our comfort. there's power in telling a story that communicates real darkness but also allows for a few laughs out loud.

the trees / percival everett / read on audio, 9.24.26

what happens if the structure of everything you know crumbles in a second, at the sound of a siren? how do you contend with being the last one alive in a desolate landscape, where roads disappear and the only voice you hear—your own—cracks and doesn’t resurface? can you keep moving? can you take another step? can you settle when it’s time? can you wait, face forward, for the end?

i who have never known men / jacqueline harpman / 9.14.26

the existence of “criminalized survival” should strike the deepest shame into every american heart. to think that you could be subject to untold abuse for years—and the state is silent—and then retaliate, in self-defense, against your abuser—and the state immediately incarcerates you for life—it is barbarism, horrific, not even close to a concept of justice. how, in 2026, are we still seeing women as property?

unreasonable women / justine van der leun / read on audio, 9.11.26

that’s all for now. just happy it’s back. :-)

sometimes it takes time and distance to see through to the heart of a particular lived experience. sometimes it takes more than that. and even yet, there are times when you never can come to terms with the fact that what you’ve been through is not your fault at all.

hot wax / m. l. rio / 1.15.26

at least in the way you want. a city battered by colonial powers, uncertain of its own history and future, will feel tenuous. you may have no choice but to leave when it is at its most vulnerable state. but the song keeps playing. you will choose to keep listening.

the impossible city / karen cheung / read on audio, 1.14.26

i wish it weren’t so unsurprising that powerful people don’t care about the consequences of their actions. money and influence change hearts and minds on a fundamental scale, and as it gets worse they only care less. well-meaning people still attempt to change systems from within, but they are either changed themselves or silenced/forced to give up. how can we ever move forward in the name of solidarity and progress? we have to realize that the corporate elite are not our friends and saviors.

careless people / sarah wynn-williams / read on audio, 1.7.26

you’ve felt this way for a long time, perhaps forever, even if you weren’t completely aware. but the issue is this: there’s no model for you to follow, no manual. how do you write about something that, at least for you, hasn’t happened yet? how do you convincingly create your own model?

on strike against god / joanna russ / 1.6.26

being asked to suspend your disbelief when reading fiction is not unreasonable. but sometimes… sometimes it frustrates the reading experience and keeps you aware of the artifice for the rest of the book. perhaps this is why i don’t read rom-coms all that often.

the love hypothesis / ali hazelwood / NYD 2026

the uniquely terrifying idea that what you’ve worked so hard to achieve turns out to be completely different than what you wanted, that everyone else is making it work but you just can’t seem to. the idea that you’d literally go to hell to bring back the tyrannical and abusive person who could wave a magic wand and make it so… and yet. maybe it’s not worth it in the end.

katabasis / r. f. kuang / 12.22.25

Posts you author can now be edited and deleted.

You can now use some Markdown in your posts.

Bold, italic, and combined are supported. Also strikethrough.

i’ve always been a believer in distance. wait until you’ve had a moment to think about an experience before you attempt to describe it. but the drawback is that you can lose the intense feeling of immediacy. at least, that is unless you are philippe besson.

lie with me / philippe besson / 12.15.25

can we ever truly recognize the stranger? is there a point at which we can actually see ourselves within them? are they always an other? how can we locate the limit of empathy?

recognizing the stranger / isabella hammad / read on audio, 12.8.25

Hi Laurabae. I brought Parse back for you ❤️

Hey, welcome back. Let's try Parse out again.