Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

Aeon

How Europe Became So Rich

In a time of great powers and empires, just one region of the world experienced extraordinary economic growth. How?

Scientific American

What a Body Built to Last 100 Years Would Look Like

We would look a lot different if evolution had designed the human body to work well for a century or more.

Culture Study

Is Everything an MLM?

In a pyramid scheme, the integrity of the whole is contingent upon the retainment of each individual part; at the same time, growth can only through continual expansion of the base.

Epicurious

The Big-Batch of Braised Beef Your Family Will Go Nuts For

It’s a freezer-friendly meal that feels fancy—but couldn’t be easier to make.

Popular Science

5 Nutrition Goals That Are Better Than Weight Loss

These tricks are more sustainable than restricting food—and healthier, too.

Smithsonian Magazine

The Continuously Evolving Picture of the World’s Largest Raptor

Utahraptor is an official state dinosaur and an NBA mascot’s inspiration. Understanding it has been anything but simple.

The Washington Post

Extreme ‘Clean’ Eating Can Tip Healthy Eaters Into a Danger Zone

Disordered eating of nutritious but very limited diets can be fueled by social media, experts say.

The Guardian

‘It Could Feed the World’: Amaranth, a Health Trend 8,000 Years Old That Survived Colonization

Indigenous women in North and Central America are coming together to share ancestral knowledge of amaranth, a plant booming in popularity as a health food.

Bloomberg Businessweek

The Internet Almost Killed Barnes & Noble, Then Saved It

BookTok readers are flocking to physical stores to snag a copy of the latest viral hit—and helping the once-struggling chain turn a corner.

BBC Travel

The Woman Who Walked Around the World

Seeking a deeper connection to the world, Angela Maxwell set off to walk it alone. Six years and 20,000 miles later, she brought that connection home.

Apartment Therapy

The 27 Best Decluttering Tips of All Time

Once the extra, unnecessary stuff is deleted, only the best is left.

Bon Appétit

Fall-Apart Caramelized Cabbage

This is one of the easiest, most delicious ways to cook down a whole head of cabbage until it’s falling-apart tender.

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

Thursday, July 24

NPR

The Best Games of 2025 So Far, Picked by NPR’s Staff

From indies like Blue Prince to big console exclusives like Donkey Kong Bananza, NPR staff and contributors round up their favorite games of the year so far.

The New Yorker

Mary Had Schizophrenia—Then Suddenly She Didn’t

Some psychiatric patients may actually have treatable autoimmune conditions. But what happens to the newly sane?

The Guardian

How Video Games Are Keeping Romance Alive – One Level at a Time

Some are using Final Fantasy and GTA Online as dating sites and long-time lovers are finding comfort and connection through Resident Evil. Could video games be the ultimate relationship tool?

NPR

Are High-Protein Snacks Worth the Hype? Here’s How to Assess

Protein has taken over the packaged-snack aisles at the grocery store. But do you need extra protein in your chips and muffins?

The Guardian

Eleven-Minute Race for Food: How Aid Points in Gaza Became ‘Death Traps’

Hundreds of people have died while seeking food since delivery was taken over by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in May. But Palestinians facing extreme hunger have no choice but to take the risk.

Glamour

What Is Mushroom Coffee? Everything to Know About the Buzzy Drink

Get your caffeine fix with added wellness benefits.

The Hollywood Reporter

The 25 Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century, Ranked

From razor-edged satires to dark fairy tales, inspired haunted house riffs and nerve-shredding accounts of supernatural possession, the 2000s have been a goldmine for fright freaks.

Harper's Magazine

Your Face Tomorrow

The puzzle of AI facial recognition.

Recommended Reads

Curated by Pocket

Variety

Sarah Michelle Gellar on That Major ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ Surprise: ‘It Was So Surreal’

Sarah Michelle Gellar talks about the return of ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ and that major surprise in the movie.

SELF

3 Simple Steps to Keep Your Bananas From Rotting Way Too Soon

Expert-approved strategies for extending the life of this potassium-packed—but short-lived—fruit.

Lifehacker

How to Wear a Fitness Tracker Without Putting It on Your Wrist

The typical location for a fitness tracker is on your wrist, but not everybody enjoys wearing a watch, or is allowed to at work. (Cooks and surgeons, I see you.) Or maybe you like watches so much you’d rather wear a real watch on your wrist, and have your

USA TODAY

Pam Bondi Reportedly Told Donald Trump in May That He’s Named in Epstein Files

Attorney General Pam Bondi told President Donald Trump in May that he was named multiple times in the government’s files on Jeffrey Epstein, according to reports from the Wall Street Journal and CNN.

Real Simple

Want a Designer-Approved Home? Work With Your Architecture, Not Against It

This tip changes everything about how you should decorate your home.

POLITICO

Meet Amy Jeffress, Biden’s New Personal Lawyer

Amy Jeffress is a well-known lawyer in Washington, but it’s her work for the Jan. 6 select committee that has best prepared her to represent Joe Biden.

The New Yorker

Howard Lutnick, Trump’s Tariff Czar, Wants the Rest of the World to Pay Up

How Howard Lutnick, the Secretary of Commerce, plans to transform government into a money-making enterprise.

Atlas Obscura

The Black American West Museum Celebrates the Black Cowboy

The stereotypical cowboy is nearly always white. Turns out, that’s not historically accurate.

Popular Mechanics

The Magic at the Heart of Quantum Computers Has Finally Worked

Using a process known as “magic state distillation” in logical qubits will help make future quantum computers more fault-tolerant.

NBC News

Why WNBA Players Are Telling the League: ‘Pay Us What You Owe Us’

The league is negotiating with its players over a new collective bargaining agreement at a time when the game is more popular than ever.

USA TODAY

You’re Never Going to Believe What People Are Returning to Costco

Shoppers pushing the limits of Costco’s famously lenient “risk-free 100% satisfaction” return policy by getting full refunds for sagging sofas and stained mattresses are dividing the internet.

Inc. Magazine

The High Cost of Confident Guessing

Experience is not always an asset.

Life Hacks

Tips for better living

Time

The Surprising Reason Your Groceries Are More Expensive

A new study shows how extreme weather events are correlated to specific food price spikes in the immediate aftermath.

CNET

I Asked Pro Chefs: What Are the Most Worthless Kitchen Tools?

Save your money and a little space in your cupboard by skipping these 20 kitchen gadgets.

CNBC

The 10 Best U.S. States to Retire—It’s About More Than ‘Just the Number of Sunny Days and Taxes’

If you want affordability, access to health care and neighborhood safety, you may want to look outside historically popular retirement destinations.

SELF

5 Clear Signs You’ve Moved on From Your Ex—and Are Ready to Date Again

Are you looking to meet someone new for who they are…or who they remind you of?

The Conversation

Just How Germy Is the Public Pool? An Infectious Disease Expert Weighs In

Most pool-related illnesses won’t kill you, but no one wants to spend their vacation or a week of beautiful summer days in the bathroom.

Slate

Narcissists Aren’t Really So Bad. Just Ask These Narcissists.

The diagnosable illness is also the internet’s punching bag. These narcissists have had enough.

HuffPost

This Unfair Job Interview Question Can Instantly Determine If You’re Hired — and It’s Very Common

Experts offer advice on how to answer this tricky question — and still get the job.

The Conversation

Dogs Are Helping People Regulate Stress Even More Than Expected, Research Shows

In a 2022 survey of 3,000 U.S. adults, more than one-third of respondents reported that on most days, they feel “completely overwhelmed” by stress.

USA TODAY

RFK Jr. to Remove Controversial Ingredient From All Flu Vaccines in the US

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. signed a controversial recommendation July 23 from a vaccine panel that advised removing thimerosal from all influenza vaccines. Thimerosal is a preservative that has largely been phased out of U.S.

Elle

A Farewell to Ami Colé, the Beauty Brand That Felt Like Home

Ami Colé changed the beauty game for Black women. So, why did it have to shutter?

The Associated Press

More Americans Shift Money From Checking and Savings to Accounts With Investment Income, Study Says

New research finds that more Americans are shifting their money from checking and savings accounts into financial vehicles that pay an investment income.

NBC News

Summer Covid Cases Are Rising Across the U.S. — Is It Time for a Vaccine?

The uptick in cases, caused by a variant of the virus nicknamed “razor blade throat,” comes as many Americans have likely gone a year or longer without a Covid shot.