Books

The Aftermath of Mountain Meadows

The massacre almost brought the United States to war against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but only one man was brought to trial: John D

February 29, 2012

Arabic Manuscripts: It Used To Snow in Iraq

Baghdad was the bustling capital of the vast Islamic Empire a thousand years ago, when the city’s climate was much different than today

February 27, 2012

Peeling Open the 1947 Chiquita Banana Cookbook

What do ham banana rolls with cheese sauce and salmon salad tropical have to say about politics?

February 24, 2012

“A Precise, Beautiful Machine”: John Logan on Writing the Screenplay for Hugo

The Oscar-nominated writer tells how he adapted Brian Selznick’s bestseller for the screen

February 24, 2012

Five New Books That Will Rock You Like a Hurricane

The ‘70s music scene is being reexamined in these books by and about the major players of rock ‘n’ roll

February 22, 2012

Scientists Move Closer to Creating an Invisibility Cloak

As far as the microwaves were concerned, the 7-inch-long tube did not exist — is true invisibility that far away?

February 16, 2012

Nothing Out of the Ordinary: Squirrel Stewed, 1878

A collection of old community cookbooks reflects a changing ecology and a cultural shift: the decline of hunting, chitlins and pig’s feet

February 15, 2012

The Civil War

General Grant in Love and War

The officer who gained glory as a warrior in the Civil War also had a domestic side.

February 14, 2012

Everything You Wanted to Know About Food and Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask)

What is the term for a “euphoric sensation upon eating amazingly delicious food”

February 14, 2012

Brotherhood Spirit in Flesh Soup, or a Recipe Calling For Love

The counterculture has long been characterized by a single word: “love.” For some hippie communards, love was also a recipe ingredient

February 13, 2012

Charles McIlvaine, Pioneer of American Mycophagy

“I take no man’s word for the qualities of a toadstool,” said the man who took it upon himself to sample more than 600 species

February 8, 2012

Bedtime Reading From Beatrix Potter: Amateur Mycologist

Would Flopsy, Mopsy and Peter Cottontail have been conceived had it not been for the biases of Victorian era science?

February 6, 2012

Super Bowl Guide to Football Films

The sport was fodder for slapstick comedy, but as the technology evolved, so did the way in which filmmakers portrayed the gridiron on the big screen

February 1, 2012

Saving the Whales (And Eating Them Too?)

What does whale meat taste like, and is it anything like jojoba oil, prosciutto or jellied crustaceans?

January 27, 2012

The Allure of Nonexistent Places

Long-gone destinations have their own special appeal, don’t you think?

January 24, 2012

History Writers to Watch in 2012

A rundown of historians, authors and bloggers to follow in the coming year

January 19, 2012

The Stalking of the President

Charles J. Guiteau said he wanted to kill President James A. Garfield “in an American manner.”

January 17, 2012

The Essentials: Charles Dickens

What are the must-read books written by and about the famed British author?

January 17, 2012

Q and A: Judy Blume

The children’s book author speaks about her career and what it means to write a “banned book”

January 2012

Q and A with Cake Wrecks Blogger Jen Yates

“I’m not out to vilify bakers; I’m just trying to find a little funny in unexpected places”

December 23, 2011