WELP I have gotten behind on my links, which means a bunch of these are old. On the other hand, the passage of time has lost all meaning and the news cycle is now 3.2 seconds, so the important thing is probably just that I included some snails in dollhouses for y’all’s Friday. Have a wonderful weekend!
These are just some motherfucking snails inside some motherfucking dollhouses.
Why casting Nagini as an Asian woman is so offensive.
Ron Charles considers whether we still need Banned Books Week, and reaches no real conclusion.
Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, a writer I adore, talks about Howard Zinn and why it matters that his work was essentially and fundamentally collaborative.
I can’t wait to read Rebecca Traister’s latest book, Good and Mad. Here’s everything she was reading while she wrote it.
I typically click straight out of articles that bewail how easy it is to “cancel” somebody, but Wesley Morris has a lot of interesting, thoughtful things to say about art and morality. He also, in my opinion, missed some nuance — as people who complain about cancellation culture often do. Vulture put on a terrific round-table of responses from critics, including another forever-fave of mine, Angelica Jade Bastien. Their conversation helped me to understand something I believe but have been struggling to articulate about artistic disagreement.
What your favorite Shakespeare play says about you.
Roxane Gay reflects on the Kavanaugh hearing and harassers who claim themselves as the victims.
How to tell a good made-up language from a bad one.
Reese Witherspoon peddles a version of Southern femininity that isn’t available to everyone.
Here is a (very spoilery) superb appreciation of Practical Magic, my favorite Halloween movie.
Happy weekend!