Notebooks

Notebooks are snapshots from our writers, reflecting on current affairs and underappreciated aspects of culture and history.

From blackouts in Kherson to water shortages in Luhansk, Russia’s new imperial domains in Ukraine’s occupied territories are in turmoil.

Nepal’s Gen-Z revolution is the latest in a series of political crises that have unseated governments in South Asia.

At the heart of today’s transatlantic divide lies a divergence between European and American elites over how they interpret their shared past.

Caught between Washington and Beijing, East Asia’s middle powers survive through hedging and strategic niche-building.

The classical ideal of self-formation has been replaced by a sterile cult of productivity, simulating work and leisure while forfeiting both.

Behind Galentine’s cookies and cocktails lie the age-old dynamics of female intimacy.

Robert Bresson’s 1959 classic 'Pickpocket' is a meditation on faith and the unseen forces that shape human destiny.

Sanae Takaichi’s decisive election victory reflects broader global trends – a rightward shift in politics and a new, unapologetic nationalism.

Great railway termini reflect both the national character and the distinctive spirit of the age of their construction.