Hi 👋 

Bring out the champagne sweetie because our little reading family has grown to more than 500 Lazy Readers last week!! 🍾🥳🎉

(Work has been extremely hectic for me lately, though, so I don’t really have anything planned for a celebration 😭)

Instead, what we have is an almost-five-way-tie for our spotlight, which is unbelievable, if you sit and think about it. It’s a personal record, too.

The story that came out on top completely deserves it, though. It almost reads like a book and, in my opinion, it’s something like the platonic ideal of a longform story. No better way to celebrate all the longreading that we’ve been doing, right?

It’s extremely interesting: It follows the case of an extremely charismatic cult leader and six women who go missing after his death. It has everything: crime, sex, money, a dogged detective, even ancient magic.

If, for whatever reason, that’s not your speed, I’m sure this week’s list will still have something interesting to you. The four runners-up are all hall-of-famers in their own right, including this story, about turning Excel into an E-sport, and this true-crime article about an arrogant heir and hired guns.

There’s also this thinkpiece that urges us to rethink the economy in the face of extreme heat and this frank and brave look at death, which flips our fear of mortality into questions about our desires in life.

In any case, as with last week, please let me know what you think of the list this week by voting in the poll below. 🙏

And we’re still trying to grow the newsletter! If you like what you read, please consider helping us grow by sharing it to your friends, colleagues and family! 🫶

Happy reading and see you again next Monday!

PS - There are a few branding changes below, though they aren’t big. See if you can spot them! 😉

Story in Spotlight

I won’t waffle here: This story is incredible.

Definitely one of the best I’ve read ever.

It’s super long and reads more like a book than a longform article. It’s even broken up into manageable chapters, which makes it easy to step away for a bit and jump back in.

The writing is excellent. The tone was comfortable and the cadence wasn’t awkward at all. When reading for stories to put in our weekly lists, I try to be a bit critical on purpose, to make sure that the final recommendations are good. I couldn’t find anything to fault about the writer’s prose or reporting here. Just impressive writing and research all around.

It’s obvious that the structure was really well-planned, too, which made it relatively easy to follow the story, even if there were so many details, the timeline was convoluted, and the subject itself was very arcane.

Speaking of subject: The writer struck gold here, stumbling onto a story about a liar-turned-famous-author-turned-cult-leader and his maybe-brainwashed followers. It’s the perfect recipe for a fascinating read, with a sexually abusive cult, jealous cultists, and a world-famous cult leader.

I initially wasn’t sure that I’d be able to finish a nearly 10,000-word story that drew so heavily from Mexican culture and folklore (I just know very little about that world), but it didn’t take long for me to be completely hooked. The article itself is broken into chapters so it’s very easy to take a break and jump back in, but I didn’t even need it. I think I finished this in one sitting.

This is a very long story, but it’s also very worth it. If you’ve been missing the feeling of reading a book but still can’t commit to actually starting one, this will help you scratch that itch. Set aside 1 hour and 30 minutes for this, I’d say.

The Longread List

📊 Spreadsheet Superstars | The Verge, Free

As I said in the intro above, there were five stories competing for the spotlight this week, and this one came in second. It’s brilliant. The subject is fascinating, sure—who knew competitive Excel existed?!—but it’s the writing that took it to the next level. The author was somehow able to capture the tension of competition while still infusing large sections of the story with humor and light-heartedness, all without sounding condescending to the contestants.

Reasonably long, but not excessively so. It’s also very, very easy to read, thanks to the writer’s prose. Will probably take you 40 minutes.

🚗 The Deadly Mining Complex Powering the EV Revolution | Bloomberg Businessweek, Free

The country I live in is a bit late to the electric vehicle bandwagon (it’s only starting to become mainstream here), but all the local EV bros online are already so insufferable. I understand the desire to adopt sustainable transportation, but EVs as they are now have been demonstrated to be decidedly unsustainable. This story does an incredible job at illustrating not just the environmental, but also the human harms of the rise of EVs. I hope the media does more stories like this, so we’re able to hold the industry more accountable for their products and to their promises.

Pretty long, and can get thick with details in some spots. But still very important to read. Maybe set aside at least 45 minutes for this.

👻 Inside Snapchat’s Teen Opioid Crisis | Rolling Stone, Free

At this point, is it even a TLR newsletter without an infuriating entry? And this week, that distinction goes to this story about Snapchat (apparently it’s just Snap now) and how the people behind the app have catered their product specifically to kids while simultaneously utterly failing to protect them from predatory users. The result is an opioid crisis that has claimed the lives of dozens of teenagers. Teenagers. Kids with entire lives ahead of them. And the Silicon Valley bros behind Snap refuse to take responsibility.

This is one hell of an investigation, meaning it’s dense with details—and can be difficult to digest as a result. But the writing makes the experience smooth, in my opinion. Will probably take under 1 hour, distractions included.

💰 The Problem With Erik: Privilege, Blackmail, and Murder for Hire in Austin | TexasMonthly, Free (if you haven’t burned your free stories yet)

Speaking of privileged men who don’t want to take accountability: Erik Maund is a textbook example, and this story from TexasMonthly does an incredible job of showing how being drunk on your own privilege can destroy your life. The level of research in this story is actually insane, but the way it’s been written and structured doesn’t make it unwieldy to read. Really impressive editoral work from the team.

Also: TexasMonthly is a really consistently good source of quality longform writing. Definitely worth a sub.

Very long, but it’s clearly well-planned so it’s easy to keep track of events and names and details. Can be finished in 50ish minutes if you stay focused.

🌻 You Might Be a Late Bloomer | The Atlantic, $

Allow me to get a tiny bit personal: I just turned 30 recently. I know that’s still very young by all measures, but crossing out a decade in life seems to have triggered in me some sense of existential questioning. What do I have to show for 30 years of existence? This essay from The Atlantic came at the perfect time for me. It eases that heavy pressure—from myself, from seeing things online, from seeing my friends thrive—that comes with ageing. It gives me hope that there’s still so much life for me to live, and still so much time to get where I’m supposed to be.

Not too long, and in my opinion it kind of drops off in the last 30% or so. But still very meaningful. Probably 30 minutes tops.

☀️ When It Becomes Too Hot To Work | NOÉMA Magazine, Free

Maybe I was just too naïve and sheltered in the last few years, but it feels to me like 2024 was the first time that we paid real, conscious attention to just how hot it is outside. Where I live, the government had to close down schools for a week or so just because the heat was too dangerous. This thinkpiece implores us to start having more foresight about the heat and what it will mean for the economy (not to mention the wellbeing of millions of outdoor workers throughout the planet). I find some of the writer’s points contentious, but the piece overall is still very thought-provoking, and it flags the importance of reorienting how we value and reward work amid the climate crisis.

Relatively long and can be difficult to read because the tone is more scholarly than conversational. Dense with information, too. Will probably take you 1 hour or more if you really take the time to digest the arguments.

🏛️ General Elections are a Travesty of Democracy – Let’s Give the People a Real Voice | The Guardian, Free

I’m always a bit leery to talk about democracy because I’ve learned—from experience—that I apparently have a few… unorthodox (some have said controversial) opinions. This article is similar in that sense. I’m not saying that I completely endorse its suggestions, but I do agree that we need to rethink suffrage and our civic duties, as well as democracy more broadly .

Not long at all. You can probably finish this in 15 minutes, even with minor distractions.

😵‍💫 America’s Top Export May Be Anxiety | The Atlantic, $ 

This is another story centered on a controversial take—and this time, I don’t know if I can fully agree, even if I’ve read and re-read it in the last couple of days. In a nutshell, the writer argues that America seems to be spreading anxiety to young people across the world via English-language media. That’s why, according to the article, non-English-speaking countries are happier on average, with lower levels of anxiety in general. A very interesting take, to be sure, but it seems too simplistic, no? And why does it feel like this article seems to problematize the increasing acceptance of mental health problems?

Relatively short, and the arguments are compelling enough to pull you through the article. Maybe 20 minutes.

🌊 The Audacious Scheme to Reroute India’s Water | Hakai Magazine, Free

It struck me as impressive that India has a plan to change the flow of one of its biggest rivers in an effort to alleviate some regions of floods, while providing other provinces with much-needed water. It’s not like this is a completely new concept, though, because it’s been done in other countries. But India’s is the most ambitious so far. And apparently, it’s also shrouded in controversy: Experts don’t think it’s scientifically sound, and environmentalists warn that it could have disastrous impacts. The lack of transparency isn’t helping, too.

Short. I don’t even think this qualifies as longform, per se, but it’s still a good story about a big plan with big implications. Probably 10 minutes.

🏭 Behind the Push to Re-brand LNG as “Green” | DRILLED, Free

I read about corporate lobby on a daily basis (it’s part of my day job) and I know how insidious it can be—all in service of profits—but it never fails to infuriate me. Especially when companies lobby to greenwash climate-destructive industries, like Big Oil. And I’ll be the first to admit: I wasn’t too impressed by the writing in this story, but the research was really impressive, and the subject is immensely important. I think it deserves a few minutes of your week.

Not too long, but it isn’t the smoothest reading experience. The writing definitely could be improved. Probably 15 minutes if you can stick with it.

Bonus reco!

If you haven’t read through the list and just jumped all the way down here (no judgement! I do that too, sometimes), I turned 30 recently.

And I know that that’s still way too young to be consumed by thoughts of my mortality, but it does sometimes come up when I’m in the throes of my existential pondering.

I’m so thankful to have stumbled upon this newsletter: Hello, Mortal. It tackles the topic of death head-on, but without sounding all doom-y and gloomy about it. It’s frank and compassionate, which I think is a really difficult note to strike when talking about death.

This is one of my favorite pieces from Hello, Mortal, which dives into the deeply ingrained notion of death being something to be afraid of. This flips that on its head and looks at the things we’re still preoccupied with in life as the root of this fear. And I thought that that was a really smart way to look at things.

Plus, all this talk about death really helped me normalize it—clear the proverbial minefield of death in my head, so to speak—which is important because we’re all heading there eventually, anyway.

Definitely give them a sub!

Not too long—and very important. I’d say 20 to 30 minutes.

Around the world

Here are some of the most important/interesting/infuriating news bits from around the world last week:

1 - Assange is free, finally. He struck a deal with the U.S. and has now returned to Australia, his home country.

2 - The first U.S. presidential debate took place last week, and it was quite the spectacle… or debacle. You choose.
+ Biden fumbled hard, and he acknowledges that. Dems are questioning his nomination, but are sticking by him for now.

3 - Despite its ceaseless assault on Palestinians, Israel is instead blaming the U.N. for the aid crisis in Gaza.
+ In related news, the U.S. apparently has given Netanyahu more than 2,000 bombs since October 7, 2023.

4 - In the Philippines, the National Bureau of Investigation has determined that a provincial mayor is a “Chinese national masquerading as a Filipino citizen,” as per a senator.
+ The mayor has been at the center of a national scandal about her nationality and links to illegal offshore gaming operations.
+ In other Philippine news, the Southeast Asian country is working on a defense agreement with Japan amid China’s increasing belligerence in the South China Sea.

5 - More from Japan: Scientists have created “living skin” from human cells and covered robots with it.
+ The goal is to eliminate animal testing and improve our dermatology knowledge, but it’s creepy nonetheless.

6 - In North Korea, a man was executed for listening to K-pop, according to a defector.
+ This would make for a great podcast series.

7 - Ultimate tech bro Elon Musk has welcomed his third child with his current partner, who is an exec at Neuralink. This is his twelfth child overall.
+ Another third for Musk: Recalls for his Tesla’s Cybertruck. There have now been three recalls in three months.

8 - There appears to be no link between intermittent fasting and eating disorders, asdebunked by a new paper.

9 - For my fellow PC gamers: Apparently our Steam pile of shame—games we’ve bought but have never played—amounts to $19 billion. Enough to buy an entire country.
+ Pretty crazy figures for sure, but it’s already been called into question for shoddy math and even shoddier methodology.

10 - China has become the first country to bring back rock samples from the dark side of the moon.
+ I’m not one for previews, but there’s an incredible longform story about moon rocks coming up in the next edition of TLR.

Thanks for reading! Please, please reach out if you have feedback, suggestions, or questions. I know some of the stories I recommend might be behind paywalls, and maybe I can help you with access to those, too!

Also, I’d appreciate it so much if you help me grow by sharing The Lazy Reader with friends or family who you think might also enjoy a good longform story 🫶

Until next Monday! 👋