The Top 5 Longreads of the Week

Below, our favorite stories of the week.

Sign up to receive this list free every Friday in your inbox.

* * *

1. Travels in Pornland

Andrea Stewart | Granta | Aug. 9, 2016 | 23 minutes (5,793 words)

One sex-positive woman’s exploration of Feminist porn reveals a lot about the complexity of feminist thinking, mainstream porn’s intrinsic violence and sexism, and the enduring hope of remaking sex work.

2. The Team of Men Behind Rachel Brewson, the Fake Woman Whose Trump-Fueled Breakup Went Viral

Anna Merlan | Jezebel | Oct. 4, 2016 | 20 minutes (5,198 words)

Liberal Rachel Brewson became an internet — and eventually, television — celeb after sharing the story of her tumultuous relationship with a Republican named Todd. How is she different from a thousand other personal essay writers? Rachel was never real.

3. Solving Climate Change With Beer From Patagonia’s Food Startup

Bradford Wieners | Bloomberg | Oct. 3, 2016 | 18 minutes (4,630 words)

The founder of the outdoor apparel company talks about its line of food, Patagonia Provisions, and their vision of sustainable, regenerative agriculture using a new food crop and wild grain called Kernza.

4. Speak, Memory: Can Artificial Intelligence Ease Grief?

Casey Newton | The Verge | Oct. 6, 2016 | 20 minutes (5,083 words)

“It has been less than a year since Mazurenko died, and he continues to loom large in the lives of the people who knew him. When they miss him, they send messages to his avatar, and they feel closer to him when they do. ‘There was a lot I didn’t know about my child,’ Roman’s mother told me. ‘But now that I can read about what he thought about different subjects, I’m getting to know him more. This gives the illusion that he’s here now.‘”

5. The Gruesome November Night in One of Washington’s Wealthiest Suburbs

Jason Fagone | Washingtonian | Oct. 2, 2016 | 25 minutes (6,332 words)

A husband and wife are tortured and nearly stabbed to death by a former employee’s husband. Was it revenge, or an addict’s “medication-induced delirium”?

from Longreads Blog https://blog.longreads.com/2016/10/07/the-top-5-longreads-of-the-week-139/