With 2023 coming to a close, we have collected together our most-read essays of the year.
‘Renaissance gives back, by reminding Black queer people what it’s like to be in our most sacred spaces.’
Okechukwu Nzelu on Beyoncé.
My Time Machine | Arthur Asseraf
‘How do we imagine the past of those we love?’
Arthur Asseraf on family and fractured memories.
For the Love of Losing | Marina Benjamin
‘Winning, it turns out, was the cracking whip that meant gamblers had to stay where they were until they lost their money all over again.’
Marina Benjamin on losing.
Jealous Laughter | Joanna Biggs
‘She could not make me see my best qualities, but she could sit with me.’
Joanna Biggs on literary friendships between women.
Reproducing Paul | Des Fitzgerald
‘Having a child, I came to see, was more a kind of haunting.’
An essay by Des Fitzgerald.
Beyond Deep Throat | Part I | Saskia Vogel
‘The eye wants to see its fill, the I wants to see how it feels.’
Saskia Vogel on the foundational stories of pornography.
Last Week at Marienbad | Lauren Oyler
‘The only thing on the schedule was spa.’
Lauren Oyler on her trip to Marienbad.
‘I see this everywhere. The creativity, resourcefulness and incredible talent for improvisation in Egypt.’
Wiam El-Tamami on returning to Cairo.
The Killing of a Berlin Power Broker | Peter Richter
‘Why does the centre of Berlin look like an abandoned shopping mall on the edge of Omaha?’
An essay from Peter Richter, translated by Shaun Whiteside.
Particular Matter | Amitava Kumar
‘India, as we know it, is changing. What will it become?’
Memoir by Amitava Kumar.
Feature Image © Magnum Photos, Carl de Keyzer, Casino, Las Vegas, USA, 1993
