Books
The Ten Best Science Books of 2023
From stories on the depths of the ocean to the stars in the sky, these are the works that moved us the most this year
How Children's Book Author Leo Lionni Urged His Readers to Be Change Makers
The multidisciplinary artist wanted us to imagine how we can shape society and uplift our communities
Jane Austen's Annotated Copy of 'Curiosities of Literature' Is For Sale
The novelist used a pencil to underline roughly 15 passages from the text by Isaac D'Israeli
The Ten Best Books About Travel of 2023
Take a trip without leaving home with these adventurous reads from this year
Unraveling Ulysses S. Grant's Complex Relationship With Slavery
The Union general directly benefited from the brutal institution before and during the Civil War
The Best Books of 2023
Whether you are looking for some gift ideas or a great read to enjoy on the plane or cozied up over the holidays, consider our carefully curated lists
The Ten Best Photography Books of 2023
Our favorite titles this year will make readers feel the power of visual storytelling
Smithsonian Scholars Recommend Their Favorite Books of 2023
Curators and staffers satisfied their endless curiosity with novels, short stories, biographies, art collections and journalistic reporting
The 19th-Century Novel That Inspired a Communist Utopia on the American Frontier
The Icarians thought they could build a paradise, but their project was marked by failure almost from the start
Why Can't Machines Process CO2 Like Trees? And More Questions From Our Readers
You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts
The Ten Best Books About Food of 2023
Travel to Rome, Alaska, West Africa and beyond with this year’s best cookbooks, memoirs and historic deep dives
The Ten Best History Books of 2023
Our favorite titles of the year resurrect forgotten histories and illuminate how the United States ended up where it is today
Why Is Medieval Art So Weird?
Titled "Weird Medieval Guys," a new book examines illustrations of armless frogs, human-sized snails and more
Meet the Man Who Recorded the Music of America's Front Porches and Backyard Parties
Chris Strachwitz, founder of Arhoolie Records, crisscrossed the United States photographing and recording musicians where they played
This California Museum Is Home to Hundreds of Nature's Scents
Perfumer Mandy Aftel's spellbinding collection of rare essences and artifacts is on display at the Aftel Archive of Curious Scents in Berkeley
An Early Charlotte Brontë Story Speaks to the Author's Lifelong Fascination With the Supernatural
The 1830 account details an eerie encounter with a stranger who predicted the death of the writer's father
How the Osage Changed Martin Scorsese’s Mind
“Killers of the Flower Moon” sets a new standard in its nuanced portrait of Osage life. Decades of prior films about Native Americans didn't even try
Jon Fosse Wins the Nobel Prize in Literature for Work Probing 'Human Anxiety and Ambivalence'
The dramatist and author is the first-ever laureate in the prize's history to write in Nynorsk, a written form of the Norwegian language
A Brief History of Banned Books in America
Attempts to restrict what kids in school can read are on the rise. But American book banning started with the Puritans, 140 years before the United States
Ex-Secret Service Agent's Account of JFK's Assassination Could Cast Doubt on 'Lone Gunman' Theory
Paul Landis' new book refutes the idea that a single bullet injured both the president and Texas Governor John B. Connally Jr.
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