All Arts & Culture
I told my son about slavery. Then, I told him about freedom.On a visit to the Equal Justice Initiative鈥檚 sculpture park, our columnist鈥檚 7-year-old asked, 鈥淒ad, why do those Black people have chains on them?鈥� Ken Makin thought about that trip after reading President Trump鈥檚 order of a review of America鈥檚 museums.
Armed with a top-notch cast, 鈥楾he Thursday Murder Club鈥� takes its first caseThe film version of bestseller 鈥淭he Thursday Murder Club鈥� has arrived with a stellar cast and a backdrop that plays like Hogwarts for older adults. But how does all the sleuthing and skullduggery stack up to the book?- Armed with a top-notch cast, 鈥楾he Thursday Murder Club鈥� takes its first caseThe film version of bestseller 鈥淭he Thursday Murder Club鈥� has arrived with a stellar cast and a backdrop that plays like Hogwarts for older adults. But how does all the sleuthing and skullduggery stack up to the book?
Let summer linger with the 10 best books of AugustThe Monitor鈥檚 reviewers choose the best of August 2025, from novels and biographies to accounts of history.
Cone app茅tit! Come along on the Massachusetts Ice Cream Trail.Our reporter and photographer get the scoop (or two 鈥� with sprinkles!) on a favorite summertime treat.
Robert Louis Stevenson鈥檚 travels 鈥� and travails 鈥� fueled his imagination鈥淪toryteller,鈥� a new biography by Leo Damrosch, arrives amid a brighter spotlight on Stevenson鈥檚 life and legacy.
Two historic Black churches. One vision of freedom.The Tabernacle and Ebenezer Baptist churches have been sister congregations with a storied legacy that includes Martin Luther King Jr. 鈥淲e are the church that was literally born fighting for freedom,鈥� Sen. Raphael Warnock told Tabernacle鈥檚 congregation Sunday.
There are just a handful of female Hindu priests in the US. Ranjan Ravaliya is one.Traditionally, Hindu priests are male and Brahmin. Ranjan Ravaliya is neither. And younger women, especially from immigrant families, are seeking her out to perform their wedding ceremonies.聽Part of our series on women of faith.
Syria stops banning books. Readers rejoice.The book business is booming in Syria: Authors and titles banned during the Assad family鈥檚 dictatorial rule are now legal and flying off the shelves.
Denzel Washington and Spike Lee unite for a fifth time. Film lovers rejoice.In their new film, 鈥淗ighest 2 Lowest,鈥� Spike Lee and Denzel Washington continue a partnership that began in the 1990s and still, more than 30 years later, represents a gold standard for Black Hollywood鈥檚 past and present.
How 鈥榙ocufiction鈥� helped Kate Beecroft capture wild horses and teens on filmDirector Kate Beecroft lived with rancher Tabatha Zimiga, her daughter, and a cadre of teen cowgirls for three years. She describes documentary fiction as 鈥渁n incredibly collaborative medium.鈥�
Wagner wrote stunning operas. His political views have a tangled history.鈥淭he Ring鈥� exudes dramatic power. Author Michael Downes tackles the controversies, while keeping the music front and center.聽聽
French film 鈥楾he Musicians鈥� and its classical quartet hit the right notesThe French comedy-drama 鈥淭he Musicians鈥� brings four classical artists on a journey that crescendos with, our reviewer says, 鈥渢he unifying joy that great music-making can inspire.鈥�
A New Orleans studio paints the city鈥檚 contrasts, from struggle to rebirthBrandan Odums has painted in New Orleans鈥� forgotten places, driven by the city鈥檚 difficult experience during Hurricane Katrina and its struggle to rebuild.
Seals have rebounded. Not everyone loves them.A number of seal species have been pulled back from near-extinction. But the animals are being blamed for attracting sharks to beaches and decimating fish stocks.聽
Bruuuce! The story behind the rock-star power of Springsteen鈥檚 鈥楤orn to Run.鈥�In 1975, Bruce Springsteen was about to be dropped by his record label. But the album 鈥淏orn to Run鈥� changed everything 鈥� for him and for rock.
Romantic, picturesque, surprising: The Provence you can鈥檛 missThis French region is not as sleepy or unpeopled as it appears on postcards.
Art theft or reclamation? A mystery of epic proportions.In 鈥淭he Great Chinese Art Heist,鈥� Ralph Pezzullo links a string of recent robberies with misdeeds of the colonial past.
Should art be 鈥榩atriotic鈥�? Artist pulls her Smithsonian show, citing censorship.Artist Amy Sherald pulled her show from the National Portrait Gallery, citing efforts to censor her work. The聽decision comes as the Trump administration has railed against 鈥渨okeness鈥� in federally funded museums and slashed funding for local cultural institutions.
David Hockney鈥檚 world vibrates in living colorIn 鈥淒avid Hockney,鈥� the artist鈥檚 work jumps off the page, pulsing with life. A retrospective and a book capture his vitality and inventiveness.
