There are some works of art – nonfiction in this case – that stick with you and affect your thinking deeply. Here are three of mine. (They all happen to be from The New Yorker.)
Late Bloomers (Malcolm Gladwell). Gladwell differentiates early-bloomers, like Picasso, with late-bloomers, like Cézanne. Why do we get so excited about the precocious greats?
The Coach in the Operating Room (Atul Gawande). Many athletes have coaches for their whole careers, but most other professionals don’t. Why?
Draft No. 4 (John McPhee). Really all of McPhee’s meditative essays on the writing process, but this one in particular, which considers form and structure, and how to approach finding it.