Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

The Atlantic

Finding Meaning in Going Nowhere

Author Ottessa Moshfegh opens up about coping with depression, how writing saved her life, and finding solace in an overlooked song.

Outside

Jessica Nabongo's Lessons from Visiting Every Country

Nabongo is the first documented black woman and first Ugandan to travel to every sovereign nation. Here’s what she learned along the way.

Smithsonian Magazine

Eight of Literature’s Most Powerful Inventions—and the Neuroscience Behind How They Work

These reoccuring story elements have proven effects on our imagination, our emotions and other parts of our psyche.

Stylist

How to Get Rid of Milia, Those Tiny White Bumps That Appear Around Your Eyes and Cheeks

Ever wondered what’s causing those small white bumps around your eyes? They could be milia, and your moisturizer might be to blame.

The Guardian

Six Ways to Make Your Life Easier and More Peaceful – By Using Stoic Principles

As the world felt increasingly chaotic, I wondered which principles I could apply – turns out there were many.

Bon Appétit

Coconut Creamed Greens

A sauce of coconut milk, a hot chile, and spices create a full range of bitter, sweet, and tingling flavors.

Inverse

The Universal Remote Is Streaming’s Most Tragic Casualty

Universal remotes promised to simplify controlling TV entertainment centers. Then streaming happened.

Quanta Magazine

Physicists Find a Way to See the ‘Grin’ of Quantum Gravity

A recently proposed experiment would confirm that gravity is a quantum force.

Literary Hub

No One Cares About Your Dreams—Unless You’re a Famous Writer

Saul Bellow, Susan Sontag, Sylvia Plath and more on their nighttime visions.

The Conversation

Why Mourning a Pet Can Be Harder Than Grieving for a Person

Disenfranchised grief refers to losses that society doesn’t fully appreciate or ignores. This makes it harder to mourn, at least in public.

Popular Science

One Notebook Could Replace All the Productivity Apps That Have Failed You

A nerd’s guide to bullet journaling.

The Marginalian (formerly Brain Pickings)

Iris Murdoch on Imperfection as Integral to Goodness

Plus, how the beauty of nature and art leavens our most unselfish impulses.

Popular Collections

Curated guides to the best reads on the web

Pocket Collections

The Art of Navigating Thorny Office Politics

From bad bosses to gossipy colleagues and, of course, office refrigerator drama.

Today’s Pocket Hits

Friday, August 1

The Independent

Meet the Childfree Communities Planning for a Future Without Kids

As increasing numbers of us can’t or won’t have children, Helen Coffey talks to those who are planning their lives without a nuclear family, and investigates why government policy has yet to catch up with this rapidly growing demographic.

Mother Jones

The Surgery That Reveals Everything That’s Wrong With Women’s Health Care

From "wandering wombs" to modern biases, the troubling politics of hysterectomies

The Cut

What If a Child Was Terrified of Food?

The rise of ARFID, a new eating disorder driven not by body image but by fear.

The Baffler

Winging It

For those trying to overcome their fears of flying, it’s been . . . a challenging time to say the least.

PBS

In the Gray World of GLP-1 Supplements Online, Health Experts Urge Caution

TikTok beauty influencer Kaycee Ogle is regularly contacted by brands who want her to promote their products. But one email she received in June was different, and made her curious.

The American Scholar

Hundreds and Thousands

I didn’t know how you could inventory memories. I might search for a particular one, bring it up, dust it off. But how to count five days’ worth?

The Hustle

The Only State Without a Walgreens Pharmacy

Many independent pharmacies are in turmoil throughout the US. But a unique law has made North Dakota a haven for mom-and-pop operators.

The San Francisco Standard

‘Jerry Is Rolling in His Grave’: The Deadheads Boycotting Anniversary Shows 

Some Deadheads are sidestepping San Francisco entirely ahead of the anniversary shows. “There’s no more Grateful Dead family — this is a business, through and through,” one said.

Recommended Reads

Curated by Pocket

PS

Recovery Might Be the Reason You’re Not Reaching Your Fitness Goals

Keep reading for a deep-dive on how sleep impacts your fitness abilities and how you can get back on track to peak performance.

Vanity Fair

Inside the Fiery Backlash Against Paramount’s Late Show Cancellation

The furor we’ve seen on late night and ‘South Park’ is just the beginning: TV writers plan to make the cultural cost of capitulating to Trump as high as possible.

Axios

What to Do When You’re a Trump Target, Corporate Edition

Advice for companies that become the focus of Trump’s Truth Social posts

Big Think

John Amaechi Shares the 6 Books That Changed His Thinking

The psychologist and former NBA player discusses the professional volumes and childhood stories that shaped his life and his approach to it.

NBC News

As NBA Teams Chase Youth in the Quest for a Title, This Team Is Trying the Opposite Approach

The Los Angeles Clippers have assembled perhaps the oldest roster in NBA history. Will that experience be a strength or a liability?

ESPN

Why Soccer’s Summer Transfer Window Lull Won’t Last Long

The final days of July are the dog days of soccer’s summer transfer window, but August will bring a flurry of wheeling and dealing.

Harper's Bazaar

Audiences Don’t Want Romantic Comedies Any More—They Want Romantic Horror

A gory new genre gets at the heart of our anxieties around contemporary romance and dating

Fast Company

Laid Off? Start Building up Your Personal Brand

When done well, a strong personal brand attracts job offers, and can lead to consulting or speaking opportunities.

The Atlantic

The Dangerous Logic of CTE Self-Diagnosis

The Midtown Manhattan shooter speculated that the condition was a cause of his mental illness. But drawing that line is premature—and risky.

Fast Company

From Lincoln’s Dream to an $85 Billion Merger, the Transcontinental Railroad Is Back

The coastal rail giants say it would create ‘the first transcontinental railroad in America’ through an $82 billion deal.

Popular Mechanics

A Tiny 29-Pound Electric Motor Just Beat Everyone in Power Density

Yasa, a small British engineering company, built an over-730-horsepower beast that weighs just under 30 pounds.

The New Yorker

Notes on Bed Rest

I spent months limiting my movement, to protect a high-risk pregnancy. How did it change me?

Life Hacks

Tips for better living

CNBC

Back-to-School Shopping Is More Expensive This Year — Here’s the Breakdown

This year, parents will pay more for back-to-school essentials such as pens, pencils and backpacks.

CNN

‘Ozempic Face’ May Be Driving a Cosmetic Surgery Boom

“You can only refill a deflated balloon so much, and often surgical intervention is necessary.”

Maclean’s

Confessions of the Working Poor

I work hard, buy quality clothes and know how to fake my way through dinner-party conversations. But behind the scenes, I’m part of a fast-growing Canadian underclass.

CNBC

While the Fed Kept Its Benchmark Unchanged, Here’s What Happened to Consumer Borrowing Rates

When it meets this week, the Federal Reserve is widely expected to keep its key short-term interest rate at its current target range — where it has stayed for all of 2025.

The New York Times

Study May Undercut Idea That Cash Payments to Poor Families Help Child Development

Rigorous new research appears to show that monthly checks intended to help disadvantaged children did little for their well-being, adding a new element to a dispute over expanded government aid.

NPR

In a First, the Senate Confirms a New CDC Director

Susan Monarez is the first director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to require Senate confirmation. She’s also the first director without a medical degree in more than 70 years.

The Guardian

‘It Would Destroy Me’: Fear of Student Loan Default Haunts US Borrowers

The Trump administration has ended the pandemic-era pause on repayments, leaving many facing colossal debts.

The Guardian

Trust Your Gut and Fail Bravely: Seven Influential Women on the Advice They Would Give Their 30-Year-Old Selves

It’s tempting to imagine what we might have done differently. But, as Diana Nyad says: ‘We earn our wisdom.’

CNBC

Animal Shelters Are Crowded as High Costs Squeeze Pet Owners

Millions of animals are stuck in increasingly cramped shelters because their owners are struggling to pay rising vet bills and other expenses.

CNBC

Even Many High-Earning Americans Don’t Feel Wealthy. Here’s Why

Many high earners in the U.S. still feel broke. Between lifestyle creep, debt and social pressure, even $200,000 per year doesn’t always buy peace of mind.

The Associated Press

If You Don’t Have Diabetes, Do You Really Need a Continuous Glucose Monitor?

A quarter-size device that tracks the rise and fall of sugar in your blood is the latest source of hope — and hype — in the growing buzz around wearable health technology.

Vox

How to Make the Hardest Choices of Your Life

From picking a career to picking a spouse, one radical philosophical idea will guide you.