My given name, Jeon-Gi, with a hard “G,” was one that some of the kids in my apartment complex enjoyed deforming. Chun-ky, Chun-ky. As kids do, they were weaponizing a truth, for I was a chunky child, bordering on fat thanks to my one-a-day habit of a large Snickers bar. My mother would stock boxes of these for me as long as I ate the food she made, which I happily did. She and I were a tight pair that way.Continue reading »Getting Suited UpRachel Syme on the best gear to maximize your aquatic experience this summer season. Plus: for Mother’s Day, Jessica Winter shares some of her favorite movies featuring complicated moms.“The Devil Wears Prada 2” Gives the Decline of Magazines the Glossy TreatmentJustin Chang reviews the sequel, which reunites Anne Hathaway, Meryl Streep, and Emily Blunt and is familiar and at times preposterous—but also a savvy, shiny reflection of our era.A Ten-Course Tasting Where Dessert Is the Whole PointHelen Rosner reviews Eunji Lee’s tiny Manhattan pâtisserie, Lysée, where, one evening a week, sweets are appetizer, entrée, and everything else.Great Novels of Gay LifeDouglas Stuart—whose new book, “John of John,” is out now—shares a few of his favorite works of historical fiction that center on queer characters.Letter from the U.K.A Hundred Years of David AttenboroughFor generations of TV viewers, the beloved presenter has linked the patch of glass in our living rooms and the wide world beyond. And he’s not done yet.By Anthony LaneAmerica at 250Two hundred and fifty years into the experiment we still call America, The New Yorker is both looking back at our history of hopes and upheavals and looking ahead to ask what pulls us apart and holds us together. In this special issue, you’ll find essays, reportage, rediscoveries, and art that explore the paradoxes of our nation.Sale in The New Yorker Store! For a limited time, save up to 40% off select items.Browse and buy »The Current CinemaA Tree Grows in Marburg in “Silent Friend”In Ildikó Enyedi’s meditative nature epic, three lonely experimenters from three different eras seek to unlock the secrets of plants—and learn something vital about themselves.By Justin ChangPhoto BoothThe Grandmothers Who Become Mothers AgainIn “Mawmaw,” the photographer Anthony Wilson pays tribute to West Virginia women who, after one tragedy or another, care for their children’s children.By Casey CepThe Current CinemaWhat “The Sheep Detectives” Doesn’t Understand About SheepThe new film, starring Hugh Jackman and Emma Thompson, is based on a near-perfect “sheep crime novel”—but the adaptation shows disappointingly little interest in the animal mind.By Jill LeporePop MusicThe Lone-Star Laments of Kacey MusgravesOn her new album, “Middle of Nowhere,” the singer toys with two of country music’s great themes: her home state of Texas, and solitude.By Kelefa SannehBooksHarriet Clark’s Début Is a New Kind of Coming-of-Age NovelIn “The Hill,” a daughter comes of age through visits to her imprisoned mother, inheriting the afterlife of a youthful radicalism that shattered her family.By James WoodUnder ReviewMuriel Spark, the Double AgentA new biography claims that the novelist fabricated her origin story—but that secret codes lie at the heart of her genius.By Audrey WollenWhat We’re ReadingA nonfiction account of eighteenth-century insurgencies before, during, and after the thirteen colonies began their severance from Britain; a book of poems on aging, parenthood, marriage, and memory; and more.Open QuestionsDo We Think Too Much About the Future?For most of history, people didn’t try predicting it. Maybe that was wise.By Joshua RothmanLetter from Trump’s WashingtonAll the President’s ContractorsUrged by advisers to focus on the domestic agenda, Trump trains his gaze on construction projects around the capital.By Antonia HitchensQ. & A.The U.K.’s Antisemitism ProblemThe British government has declared antisemitism a “crisis” after a recent spate of violent attacks. But will its solutions protect Jews, or make the situation worse?By Isaac ChotinerProgress ReportThe Political Power of the Wine MomThe label has become a useful shorthand for a particularly activated liberal cohort, and the results of the midterms may hinge on this otherwise ill-defined group.By Jessica WinterAnnals of MotherhoodComplicationsThe playwright Wendy Wasserstein had tried to get pregnant for nearly a decade by the time she settled into the Labor and Delivery ward at New York City’s Mount Sinai Hospital. She was forty-eight, and, although she was finally expecting, nearly everything would prove a surprise. For reasons beyond age, Wasserstein stood out from the other soon-to-be moms: she was a Pulitzer and Tony winner for her most popular play, “The Heidi Chronicles.” In 2000, she wrote about her late-in-life pregnancy, which brought with it severe complications, then a life-or-death battle for a baby weighing less than two pounds.In Case You Missed ItDeep State DiariesThe Real Cost of Downsizing Social SecurityUnder new leadership, the agency has reduced the role of field offices across the country and centralized its operations, making it harder for millions of Americans to get help with their benefits.By E. Tammy KimThe Weekend EssayJonathan Swift’s Last JokeThe writer composed his own epitaph. Did it have a secret satirical intent?By Ed CaesarLetter from WashingtonDonald Trump’s Pardon EconomyFor some wealthy offenders, clemency is just a golf game—or a million-dollar plate at Mar-a-Lago—away.By Ruth MarcusDaily Cartoon“I told you this would happen if we didn’t use place cards.”Cartoon by Guy Richards Smit