Listicles, tweets, your ex’s Facebook status, picture of dogs wearing costumes — the Internet offers no shortage of entertaining stuff to look at. But there’s plenty of substantial writing out there, too, the pieces you spend a few minutes reading and a long time thinking about after you’ve closed the tab. In this weekly feature, Flavorwire shares the best of that category. This time, superior Mad Men blogging and interviews, Leslie Jamison on female pain, the search for Tom Lehrer, and more.
“Mad Style: Time Zones,” Tom + Lorenzo
Fashion bloggers Tom and Lorenzo made their name through writing passionate, funny Project Runway recaps, but they shine the brightest in their Mad Men “Mad Style” recaps, where they analyze the show through the choices made by costume designer Janie Bryant. (Funny enough, quite relevant to the music and movie “critics should analyze technique” wars currently raging.)
“Grand Unified Theory of Female Pain,” by Leslie Jamison, VQR
The Flavorwire books team can say with confidence that Leslie Jamison’s surprise-hit essay collection, The Empathy Exams , has a very real chance of ending up on our list of the year’s best books. Since you already read our interview with her, take the opportunity to read the stunning final essay in the collection.
“The Warren Brief,” by Jill Lepore, The New Yorker
Elizabeth Warren, senior senator from Massachusetts and folk hero for the middle class, has a biography, A Fighting Chance, coming out next week. It is reportedly not the obligatory book that’s released before a Presidential run, but the New Yorker‘s Jill Lepore has some insights regarding the selling of Warren’s bio and book, originally titled Rigged.
“The Missing Borges,” by Graciela Mochkofsky, The Paris Review Daily
A thrilling mystery about a rare copy of Jorge Luis Borges’ first book of poetry, Fervor de Buenos Aires, forgery, stealing, and the library.
Gay Talese’s journalism helped define the ’60s in America, so of course we want to hear what he has to say about the current work of art exploring the ’60s in America, Mad Men.
“Looking for Tom Lehrer,” by Ben Smith and Anita Badejo, BuzzFeed
Tom Lehrer was a singular satirical comedian who got famous for his parody songs, left a legacy of comedy in his wake, and then completely disappeared from the public eye — maybe the most punk rock move of all?
“My Vape Pen and I, a Love Story,” by Whoopi Goldberg, The Cannabist
Sort of surprising newspaper-columnist-of-the-week bonus: As The Cannabist’s (The Denver Post‘s outpost for marijuana news) celebrity columnist, national treasure Whoopi talks about how her vape pen, “Sippy,” enriches her awesome, EGOT-winning life.