“Roadkill” Offers the Fantasy of Politics as Usual

The British political thriller, full of small-bore scandals and Victorian twists, can hardly compete with reality.

2h

Paul Theroux on Making Sense of One’s Life

The author discusses “Dietrologia,” his story from this week’s issue of the magazine.

2h

The Race to Make Vials for Coronavirus Vaccines

A Corning factory in upstate New York is running around the clock to help meet the urgent demand.

2h

Using the Homeless to Guard Empty Houses

As the pandemic makes an already terrible housing crisis worse, a new version of house-sitting signals a broken real-estate market.

2h

Briefly Noted Book Reviews

“Wintering,” “We Keep the Dead Close,” “Bring Me the Head of Quentin Tarantino,” and “Music for the Dead and Resurrected.”

2h

What if You Could Outsource Your To-Do List?

Virtual assistants are one click—but often one continent—away. A new industry for bringing order to our work lives could shift the order of our workforce.

2h

COVID Goes to College

An economics professor, comparing lives saved with the cost of the shutdown, asked students, How much is a life worth? One answered twenty-four thousand dollars.

2h

“Dietrologia”

Fiction by Paul Theroux: “He knew what she meant: All this furniture, all these books, the pictures, the vases, the house itself—dispose of it. Then proceed to the unit.”

2h

Tobias Menzies of “The Crown” Survived Lockdown on Helena Bonham Carter’s Couch

Before playing Prince Philip, the British actor took on Wallace Shawn’s “The Fever,” Brutus, and a cursed bridegroom in “Game of Thrones.”

2h

The Brooklyn School Suing the C.D.C.

Coney Island Prep’s lawsuit alleges that the government’s incompetence in dealing with COVID is not just destructive—leaving people dead and making it hard for many others to do their jobs—but also illegal.

2h