How to fix the Met
‘It’s impossible to predict hits,’ said the man paid $1.4 million a year to, well, predict hits
Books and Arts
Tuesday
Witnessing Humanity: The Art of John Wilson is a must-see show
The Met’s show is tribute to a fine artist of boundless talent
The closest look yet at David Bowie’s mind and imagination
The much-missed musician is the beneficiary of a new, bespoke space inside the Victoria & Albert Museum’s East Storehouse outpost
New York Fashion Week’s shimmer feels noticeably dimmed
The week has evolved into a content-driven machine
Spinal Tap II is an amusing, honorable successor to the original film
Above all, Reiner proves his vim and vigor by the very quality of the film
Tuesday
Two wholly different but complementary ways of looking at Christianity
Twelve Churches is a hugely accomplished and endlessly readable book, rich in historical and ecclesiastical detail
Patricia Lockwood’s latest novel transcends genres
Many books mix fiction and memoir. Successfully incorporating criticism into a novel is more unusual
Patrick Ryan’s second novel doesn’t pretend to be perfect
Buckeye is a fine illustration of how drawing-room tensions can fester and become matters of historical significance.
The Life of Violet catches a side of Virginia Woolf that has been obscured
A new Woolf typescript is cause for celebration. Two cheers for Seshagiri. But this new edition is a weak casket
Trump is right to take on the Smithsonian
The curators’ political peacocking has long carried no risk
Ben Shahn’s work remains as timely as ever
The artist’s unflinching vision of a world gone awry is as powerfully direct as his late-in-life compositions of compassion and hope
Eyes of the Storm revisits an era
In early photos, the crowds – and the band members – are eager, curious and frank
Nick Drake’s explosive creativity
The first comprehensive repackaging of any of Drake’s albums does justice to the musician
Viola’s Room is beguiling
Every detail, every sound, every object feels intentional
Over the Moon renders the present with an eye toward the timeless
The play rises from social commentary to legitimate art piece, avoiding mere parody and ax-grinding
Tuesday
Frank S. Meyer was a political paradox
Noel Parmentel’s quote, ‘The right wing was fun back then,’ is one of the takeaways from Daniel J. Flynn’s new book
The thrill of ghostwriting
Julia Clark’s new novel succeeds both as a gripping mystery and a sly commentary on the art of storytelling itself
A more rounded picture of James Baldwin
Nicholas Boggs has written the first major biography of the writer in more than 30 years
Why Jane Austen is still the queen of romance
The writer remains supreme in part because women don’t merely want dazzling men, we want to be dazzling ourselves.
Vermeer’s Love Letters is something of a riddle
The paintings become mysteries, enticing and deserving of attention precisely because there are so few