Literary Lives An interview with artist Edward Sorel and a gallery of images (featuring the story of Tolstoy’s odd life) from his new book of illustrated—and unflattering—biographies of canonized authors.

Nothing’s Shocking Once upon a time, music idols were evil enough for your parents to hate them. So what do we have left, now that our demons are as safe as pie? Dennis Mahoney gives us the (hopefully) grim details.

A Few Hours in Havana Havana is a beautiful city: loud, old, rotting in some parts, opulent in others. And, for Americans, completely off-limits unless you’re a student, Ry Cooder, or willing to risk your government’s wrath. Traveling correspondent Tim Weed describes a recent visit, with memories of ghosts, women, and stylish refrigerators.

Birnbaum v. T.C. Boyle If we spend so much of our lives thinking and worrying about sex, is it any surprise the involved emotions are tied to chemicals? Robert Birnbaum talks to maverick author T.C. Boyle in a lively back-and-forth about Dr. Alfred Kinsey, contemporary fiction, and the role of the husband in the kitchen.