Four camouflage military vehicles with missiles perched on their surfaces are seen from above on a lined concrete lot.
Four camouflage military vehicles with missiles perched on their surfaces are seen from above on a lined concrete lot.

Is the U.S. Ready for War With China?

U.S. military planners are caught in an impossible dilemma. This article has an audio recording

Excerpt
Franz-Stefan Gady
A tight shot of a a Labubu character's face.
A tight shot of a a Labubu character's face.

Plush Power

How Labubu dolls became China’s first contemporary cultural export.  This article has an audio recording

Argument
Bobby Ghosh
Two people dressed in military gear in the cockpit of an airplane, flying above cloud cover.
Two people dressed in military gear in the cockpit of an airplane, flying above cloud cover.

‘A House of Dynamite’ Isn’t Explosive Enough

Kathryn Bigelow’s nuclear thriller is terrifying—but falls short of true provocation.

Review
Megan DuBois
Henry Kissinger holds papers under one arm as he looks out of a tall window with drapes on either side.
Henry Kissinger holds papers under one arm as he looks out of a tall window with drapes on either side.

It’s (Still) Henry Kissinger’s World

A new documentary argues Nixon’s secretary of state learned the wrong lessons from his experiences with Nazi Germany.

Review
Julian E. Zelizer
A woman is seen in mid-thigh deep water on a flooded street. Other people are behind her with buses on either side.
A woman is seen in mid-thigh deep water on a flooded street. Other people are behind her with buses on either side.

Even Doomsday Will Divide Us

Megha Majumdar’s “A Guardian and a Thief” interrogates how the have-nots get by in a climate catastrophe.

Review
Somak Ghoshal
Visitors look at books at the Frankfurt Book Fair in Frankfurt, Germany, on Oct. 15.
Visitors look at books at the Frankfurt Book Fair in Frankfurt, Germany, on Oct. 15.

From Gutenberg to the Deutsche Mark, the Long History of the Frankfurt Book Fair

The world’s largest annual book event gets underway.

Insider
Cameron Abadi, Adam Tooze
An. illustration shows the back of a pickup laden with durian. One is cracked open with an odor waft coming out of it toward a Chinese flag at left. Palm trees frame the scene. The truck plate says Bangkok in Thai lettering.
An. illustration shows the back of a pickup laden with durian. One is cracked open with an odor waft coming out of it toward a Chinese flag at left. Palm trees frame the scene. The truck plate says Bangkok in Thai lettering.

The Rise of Durian Diplomacy

In Asia, soft power rests on a divisive, spiky fruit.

Analysis
Gloria Dickie
A soldier is seen through bare branches as he reads by a campfire.
A soldier is seen through bare branches as he reads by a campfire.

7 Books That Reveal How Kremlin Decision-Makers Think

Don’t read these new titles on Russia’s wars before bedtime.

Review
Edward Lucas
The Life and Thought of Alexandre Kojève, Marco Filoni, trans. David Broder, Northwestern University Press, 280 pp., $38, July 2025
The Life and Thought of Alexandre Kojève, Marco Filoni, trans. David Broder, Northwestern University Press, 280 pp., $38, July 2025

The Forgotten Beginning of the End of History

Alexandre Kojève was one of the most influential 20th-century thinkers. How can we make sense of him today?

Review
Jack Hanson
Professor Michael Sandel leads a dialogue on the ethics of artificial intelligence in Harvard’s Sanders Theatre.
Professor Michael Sandel leads a dialogue on the ethics of artificial intelligence in Harvard’s Sanders Theatre.

Michael Sandel’s Critique of Liberalism

The prize-winning political philosopher on how to engage in morally robust public discourse in the age of Trump.

Q&A
Cameron Abadi
A man in a coat outside of a glass office building, with high rise buildings under construction in the background.
A man in a coat outside of a glass office building, with high rise buildings under construction in the background.

China’s Tech Obsession Is Weighing Down Its Economy

A decade of cutting-edge investment hasn’t translated into growth.

Essay
Scott Kennedy, Scott Rozelle
The green branches of an olive tree catch a falling missile above the Arabic word "sumud"
The green branches of an olive tree catch a falling missile above the Arabic word "sumud"

You Already Know What ‘Sumud’ Means

Despite its Palestinian specificity, the word reveals universal truths.

Decoder
Richard Morgan
Luca Marinelli as Benito Mussolini in a film still.
Luca Marinelli as Benito Mussolini in a film still.

Mussolini, the Rock Star Antihero

A new historical drama chronicles the birth of fascism as seen through the eyes of Il Duce himself.

Review
Tim Brinkhof
Pete Seeger holds a guitar and stands at an array of microphones as he sings. People stand behind him listening and a man at left holds up a microphone.
Pete Seeger holds a guitar and stands at an array of microphones as he sings. People stand behind him listening and a man at left holds up a microphone.

The Link Between Bad Bunny and Pete Seeger

Popular entertainers can deliver symbolic blows in dangerous times.

Analysis
Julian E. Zelizer
A grid of 12 fiction book covers released in October 2025.
A grid of 12 fiction book covers released in October 2025.

The Novels We’re Reading in October

Historical fiction set in ancient Britain and 20th-century Puerto Rico.

Books
Chloe Hadavas, Allison Meakem
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