Andrew Shields

On hearing “Sultans of Swing”, by Dire Straits, in January 1979

A Japanese lantern lit by gas in Marcel Proust's "Du côté de chez Swann" (1913)

Songs about turning or being 64 or 22 or 18 or 16 – but none about turning or being 60?

Witchcraft in Thomas Hardy’s “The Return of the Native” (1878)

Steve Silberman (1957-2024): The Grateful Dead, journalism, the history of autism, and a lively presence on social media

Ben Rhodes, the moment between the Trump assassination attempt and the Biden withdrawal, and our moment today