This Week’s Issue: The Secret Lives of Fungi

Plus: A journey to reach the deepest point in every ocean, the pianist Igor Levit, and mutual aid under the coronavirus. View in browser | Update your preferences Books The Secret Lives of Fungi They shape the world—and offer lessons for how to live in it. By Hua Hsu Annals of Activism What Mutual Aid Can Do During a Pandemic A radical practice is suddenly getting mainstream attention. Will it change how we help one another? By Jia Tolentino A Reporter at Large Thirty-six Thousand Feet Under the Sea The explorers who set one of the last meaningful records on earth. By Ben Taub Profiles Igor Levit Is Like No Other Pianist He’s a political activist. His repertory is vast. And, during Germany’s shutdown, he streamed more than fifty performances from home. It’s made him question what a concert can be. By Alex Ross Coronavirus Chronicles The Engineers Taking on the Ventilator Shortage The newest designs are smart, streamlined, and inexpensive. Will they be enough? By James Somers Comment The Folly of Trump’s Blame-Beijing Coronavirus Strategy The relationship between the U.S. and China was already fragile; now the two countries are turning against each other in perilous ways. By Evan Osnos Books The Myth of Henry Kissinger Nixon’s Secretary of State was a far less remarkable figure than his supporters, his critics—and he himself—believed. By Thomas Meaney The Theatre The First Great Original Play of Quarantine Richard Nelson’s “What Do We Need to Talk About?” takes place on Zoom, which, for once, isn’t an irritating technical compromise but an integral plot point. By Alexandra Schwartz Newsletters Sign Up for the New Yorker Recommends Newsletter Discover what our staff is reading, watching, and listening to each week. Humor from The New Yorker Shouts & Murmurs If You Ask Me: The Last Quarantine Think Piece When Ivanka speaks, in her breathy Tweety Bird-at-boarding-school burble, the effect is complete: she’s like an American Girl doll with a trust fund and a Gucci attaché case. By Libby Gelman-Waxner Cartoons From The Issue Cartoons from the Issue Drawings and drollery from this week’s magazine. This e-mail was sent to you by The New Yorker. To ensure delivery, we recommend adding newyorker@newsletters.newyorker.com, to your contacts, while noting that it is a no-reply address. Please send all newsletter feedback to tnyinbox@newyorker.com. For more from The New Yorker, sign up for our newsletters, shop the store, and sign in to newyorker.com, where subscribers always have unlimited access. Contact us with questions. View our Privacy Policy Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2020. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.