the debut novelAn obsession with the body and, ultimately, love: mother and daughter, two new Bovarys. Introducing "New Skin"In Sarah Wang’s debut novel (Foglio Edizioni), the protagonists Fanny and Linli grapple with the contemporary obsession with beauty and culture shock. Second chances do exist, but only if you’re willing to pay for thembyEster Viola29 SEP 26
The caseThe Sidney Sweeney advert and feminism in crisisIn the Novig campaign, the American actress appears without knickers and completely naked, covered here and there by balloons and various props. Before, breasts were shown because people liked to see them; now we need to think about itbyEster Viola19 SEP 26
Summer with EsterThe ‘Gen Z stare’: a look that speaks louder than wordsStudies indicate that people no longer converse with one another. The effort of engaging verbally appears futile and tedious, and digital messaging has become the more convenient alternative. The loss of that aspect of human interaction is regrettable.byEster Viola5 SEP 26
Summer with EsterDating app fatigue and our rush to change what we don’t likeThe few who still use dating apps are regretting it: they’ve become a den of animals, so-called ‘human tragedies’ and all manner of monsters. One might wonder what happened – probably nothing much; it was just the usual contemporary obsession: the idea that if an obstacle is removed, we assume all the difficulty has vanished. But love takes timebyEster Viola4 SEP 26
Dis-influencerThe new generation of TikTokers and the like who can do the Ferragnez much better than the Ferragnez themselvesWe are already in the third era of influencers. Initially, it was sufficient simply to be attractive and display that fact; subsequently, ubiquity prevailed: filming everything, all the time, to the point of turning private life into a continuous live stream. Today, even that is no longer enoughbyEster Viola3 SEP 26
Summer with EsterA Decalogue for the End of the WorldWars, AI, viruses, climate change. An anxiety-inducing collection of apocalyptic scenarios without Bruce Willis blasting asteroids to save the EarthbyEster Viola2 SEP 26
Summer with EsterUnderstanding September, that respectable month that puts an end to all pretences – both with oneself and with othersThe calendar’s oddities are over; now the waiting begins again, no matter what it’s for. A time of strange, unpretentious enthusiasmbyEster Viola1 SEP 26
Summer with EsterHaakon VIII, the ‘hygge’ king in search of water for half-empty glassesHarald V’s successor has the sort of profile you’d find in a contemporary novel: he works in creative fields and spends his time trying to work out where he might fit into the world and society, whilst focusing on the tiny little things that bring a sense of well-beingbyEster Viola29 AUG 26
summer with esterZuck got cold feet and played it safe, just like the real tech tycoonsMeta’s founder panicked and is paying far more than 18 billion: the upheaval is total, and his big toy might no longer workbyEster Viola28 AUG 26