Friday Night Tykes
A season with the best 12-year-old football team in Texas.
But Never a Lovely So Real
The life and work of Nelson Algren.
The Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist
On the theft of 6 million pounds of maple syrup from Canada’s strategic reserve and the group of free market renegades who are fighting “The Maple Wars.”
The Fiscal Cliff Deal That Almost Wasn't
The inside story.
Amnesia and the Self That Remains When Memory Is Lost
On living without memories.
A Jew in the Northwest
On leaving New York for Portland.
A Pickpocket's Tale
A profile of Apollo Robbins, widely regarded as the world’s best pickpocket.
In Unfamiliar Waters
Two American backpackers, two Indonesian villagers, one small boat, 15 slices of bread, a dozen hard-boiled eggs, ten oranges, five apples, two pineapples, two bags of cookies, two packages of peanuts, eight liters of water, one machete and three weeks adrift at sea.
To Die For
Robert Blake, Bonny Lee Bakley, and the misery of celebrity.
John McAfee's Last Stand
On November 12, 2012, after Belizean police announced that they were seeking him for questioning in connection with the murder of his neighbor, John McAfee began a well-publicized stint on the lam. Six months earlier, the writer had begun an in-depth investigation into McAfee's life. This is the chronicle of that investigation.
Listen to Joshua Davis disucsses this article on the Longform Podcast.
Happiness Is a Worn Gun
On wearing a concealed handgun and how it changed the author’s worldview.
How Much Tech Can One City Take?
How a burgeoning tech workforce swallowed San Francisco.
The Sharp, Sudden Decline of America's Middle Class
Profiles of people who live in their car after losing almost everything during the Great Recession.
I Spy
How amateur satellite aficionados track the U.S. government’s spy technology.
Sponsored
Sponsor: Aeon Magazine
Aeon is a new digital magazine of ideas and culture, publishing an original essay every weekday. Just launched in September 2012, Aeon has already produced a slew of fascinating pieces, several of which have been featured on Longform. Here are three of the very best:
The Golden Age
John Quiggin on the 15-hour week.
The Vanishing Groves
Ross Andersen on seeing the history of the universe in tree rings.
Return Trip
Erik Davies on rehabilitating psychedelics.
Read those stories and more at aeonmagazine.com.
Atonement
In 2003, a platoon of American soldiers opened fire on a family in a Baghdad intersection. A decade later, one of the shooters tracks down the survivors.
Disaster Movie
On the actors who unwittingly starred in The Innocence of Muslims.
Into Everlasting Fire
A meditation on Hell.
The Children Who Went Up In Smoke
In 1945, a fire tore through the home of George and Jennie Sodder. Four children escaped; five vanished.
Soul Men
Dan Akroyd, John Belushi, cocaine, and the making of The Blues Brothers.
For Poor, Leap to College Often Ends in a Hard Fall
The story of three friends from Texas and the obstacles they face trying to get a college degree in an age of economic inequality.
Longform for iPad: On Sale!
Normally $4.99, Longform's critically acclaimed iPad app is available today for just 99 cents.
Story picks from the Longform editors, plus the latest articles from more than 60 of the world's best magazines. Elegant, reader-friendly design. Offline accessible. Perfect for commutes, flights, and Sunday afternoons.
It's the only magazine app you'll ever need.
Blues Cruise
A dispatch from The National Review’s post-election cruise.
How a Gun-Loving West Texas Girl Learned to Fear Assault Weapons
A writer’s evolving relationship with guns.
Listening to Beck
A profile of Beck on the eve of his new album and nearly 20 years after the release of “Loser.”
