A Place Among the Fiddlers
In a southwest Virginia fairground, thousands of musicians gather every August to keep a centuries-old tradition from flickering out.
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Longreads features
Making Meaning, One Step at a Time: A Conversation with Earl Swift
Strong pacing and flow gets your reader to the finish line. The author of Up On Cove Mountain explains why they’re so important.
Still On Its Way to Cleveland
Nine months, 25,000 miles, one phone cord, and the kindness of strangers.
Eating Alone
Soggy fries, ghost kitchens, and a $19 bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich: what we’ve actually gained on the path to convenience.
Going Up and Going In
A solo climber considers the outermost reaches of risk, and the unlikely ways in which they redefine us.
Ladies of the ’80s
How Madonna, Grace Jones, Joan Jett, Whitney Houston, and their contemporaries broke the stodgy musical mold of the ’60s and ’70s to inspire generations of women to pick up an instrument and learn to play music.
Black and Blue in Cleveland
Both of Wilbert L. Cooper’s parents were cops. In this excerpt from his memoir, Cooper recounts how his mother got into the force—and what the department did to try to keep her out.
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Weekly Top 5
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Showcasing stories from Max Daly, Seth Kaplan, Anna Holmes, Alexander Clapp, and Colin Vanderburg
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Showcasing stories from J.B. MacKinnon, Daniel Kolitz, Daniel Shailer, Justin Neuman, and Hanif Abdurraqib.
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Recommending stories by Garrett M. Graff, Hannah McAlilly, Lizzy Goodman, Simon Hattenstone, and Duncan Fyfe.
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Learn to Love Your Search Results Again.
Introducing the Longreads Story Recommender.
The Longreads questionnaire
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring Roberto José Andrade Franco
The ESPN writer tells us what feels like home, the best gift he’s ever received, and the Esquire read he can’t stop thinking about.
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring Jon Ronson
The author of The Castle likes his music in a time capsule and silence in his home—but definitely not in his stories.
The Longreads Questionnaire, Featuring Jaya Saxena
The former Eater correspondent has a new home—and a full plate. Here, she talks about growing up in NYC, favorite meals, and memorable reads.
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Excerpts from The Atavist Magazine, our sister publication
The Thief Who Wanted to Save the World
An ex-cop pulled off the largest armed robbery in Austria’s history, with his friend’s mistress as his accomplice. But he wasn’t trying to get rich. He wanted to be a real-life Robin Hood.
Secrets of the Atomic City
For decades, workers at a nuclear facility in Kentucky were exposed to dangerous levels of radiation. Management assured them nothing was wrong. Then four friends risked everything to reveal the truth.
God’s Children
The Kerrs were devoted to one another and to their faith. But when one of their own rejected modern medicine, they faced a dire question: What if her children ever needed a doctor to save their lives?
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Longreads reading lists
Lost and Found: A Reading List on Labyrinths, Mazes, and Wayfinding
Lost in a maze or found in a labyrinth? Come, let’s keep walking.
Found Wanting: A Reading List on Measurement
We know that the act of measuring changes what is measured. Might it change us measurers, too?
Here’s the Scoop: A Reading List on Ice Cream
Seven stories that celebrate the surprising influence of a humble dessert.
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