This story was funded by our members. Join Longreads and help us to support more writers. In this week’s edition: Military influencers and warrior-culture capitalism. The joy of science, imagination, and discovery. Booking a table at a hot restaurant—for a price. The one-euro-house scheme that changed...

1999 was such a bonkers year for movies that a friend of mine wrote a book about it. Some were blockbusters (The Matrix, The Sixth Sense). Some were small-bore classics (Being John Malkovich, Election). But nothing rode the line between small and big—or enjoyed a legacy so out of proportion to its initial reception—quite like Doug Liman’s Go. Cue this...

Explorer posts, overseen by the Boy Scouts, are supposed to foster an interest in policing. They have faced nearly 200 allegations of misconduct: Reporters found abuse allegations in big and small departments spanning much of the country. In Connecticut, an officer first tried to ply a 17-year-old Explorer with compliments and a silver bracelet....

This story was funded by our members. Join Longreads and help us to support more writers. Sarah Stankorb | Longreads | May 9, 2024 | 2,874 words My mother hadn’t made sense on the phone, muttering about a blinking light and a duck. She’d entered respite care while my father healed from a broken hip. Plucked from the routines...

Did you know that the average American consumes an average of eight pounds of avocados per person, per year? Indeed the time has come for the fruit, which is rich in the fats we need for brain health, digestion, and more. Restaurants have also struggled with consistent quality when it comes to avocados. While working in retail banking, Miguel...

In this excerpt from her book, Alien Earths: The New Science of Planet Hunting in the Cosmos, Lisa Kaltenegger makes science accessible—and exciting. Recounting the day she learned of a new discovery, her enthusiasm is infectious, and you will devour every word. That cold day in Vienna with terrible coffee turned into one of the most exciting...