The Titan Submersible Was “an Accident Waiting to Happen”

Ben Taub reports on the disaster. Plus: Jay Caspian Kang on affirmative action; Aristotle’s rules for living well; and new fiction by Paul Yoon. View in browser | Update your preferences Saturday, July 1, 2023 A Reporter at Large The Titan Submersible Was “an Accident Waiting to Happen” Interviews and e-mails with expedition leaders and employees reveal how OceanGate ignored desperate warnings from inside and outside the company. “It’s a lemon,” one wrote. By Ben Taub From the News Desk Our Columnists Why the Champions of Affirmative Action Had to Leave Asian Americans Behind The original concept in pursuit of diversity was vital and righteous. The way it was practiced was hard to defend. By Jay Caspian Kang The Political Scene Podcast The Dark-Money Supreme Court Our political roundtable looks at the Supreme Court’s conservative tilt as another term concludes, this one marked by ethics scandals and landmark rulings. With Susan B. Glasser, Jane Mayer, and Evan Osnos Editor’s Pick Books Aristotle’s Rules for Living Well The Nicomachean Ethics is an unexampled work by a paragon of classical thought. How does it hold up as a self-help manual? By Nikhil Krishnan Books We Recommend This Week Reviews of notable new fiction and nonfiction. Winnie and Nelson, by Jonny Steinberg (Knopf). Eschewing hagiography, this portrait of the Mandelas’ marriage does justice both to the couple’s political heroism and to the betrayals and the secrets that hounded their union. Nelson emerges as the quieter force, with Winnie essential to his consecration. Buy now on Amazon or Bookshop. Tomorrow Perhaps the Future, by Sarah Watling (Knopf). This group portrait examines those people—including Jessica Mitford, Langston Hughes, Sylvia Townsend Warner, Nancy Cunard, Martha Gellhorn, the war photographer Gerda Taro, and the nurse Salaria Kea—whose commitment to antifascism was galvanized by the Spanish Civil War. Watling deploys a wealth of firsthand testimony and archival materials, not in service of a conventional work of history but in an extended consideration of contemporary concerns. Buy now on Amazon or Bookshop. The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese (Grove). This novel begins in 1900 in southern India, with the arranged marriage of a twelve-year-old girl to a forty-year-old widowed farmer. Big Ammachi, as she comes to be called, has married into a family with a curse: once every generation, a member drowns. Life unspools across seven decades, during which time Big Ammachi’s loved ones suffer maladies that are treated by practitioners of both traditional and Western medicine. Buy now on Amazon or Bookshop. The House Is on Fire, by Rachel Beanland (Simon & Schuster). The Richmond Theatre fire of 1811 was, at the time, the deadliest disaster in U.S. history, killing seventy-two. This historical novel examines the event and its aftermath through four figures: the stagehand who accidentally starts the fire; a well-to-do widow in a box seat; an enslaved young woman, attending with her mistress but confined to the colored gallery; and a blacksmith, also enslaved, who rushes to the scene and rescues patrons jumping from windows. Buy now on Amazon or Bookshop. The best books of 2023 so far What are you reading this week? Reply to let us know. Culture Dept. Fiction “Valley of the Moon” “The tinker shook his head. ‘Who wants to live out here? Only you. Not even the soldiers guarding the border, a day’s journey north, want to be there.’ ” By Paul Yoon This Week in Fiction Paul Yoon on the Korean War’s Aftershocks The author discusses “Valley of the Moon,” his story from the latest issue of the magazine. By Cressida Leyshon Fourth of July Sale in The New Yorker Store! Enjoy 15% off in The New Yorker Store, through July 4th. Fun & Games Dept. Daily Cartoon Bonus Daily Cartoon: It Can Always Get Worse By Liz Montague Name Drop Play the Quiz Can you guess the notable person in six clues or fewer? By Matt Jackson Shouts & Murmurs “The Brand New Show”: A Treatment If it stays on, we might call it “The Old New Show.” Or “The Old Show.” Or “The Show.” Or “Dag Hammarskjöld,” which we feel would confuse and intrigue viewers. By John Kenney Daily Shouts Day at the Beach Let’s take a group photo! Nothing could be easier than taking a group photo! By Al Franken Thanks for reading. Let us know your thoughts about today’s edition. Plus, browse more newsletters and invite a friend to sign up for The Daily. You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for The Daily from The New Yorker. Manage your preferences | View our Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2023. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.