Brain Pickings: Sustenance for the Literary Soul

An intelligent collection of writings on cultural topics – literature, art, science, psychology, design, philosophy, history, politics, anthropology – Brain Pickings presents its content in unique and artistic ways. This site is a treat. One needs to visit and poke around to understand all that it offers and appreciate the depth of its literary exploration.

A labor of love and intellectual curiosity, Brain Pickings is written and curated by Maria Popova and followed by millions. Popova grew up in Bulgaria, is a graduate of both the University of Sofia and the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School of Communications, and has written for The Atlantic, Wired UK, GOOD Magazine, The Huffington Post and the Nieman Journalism Lab. She is an MIT Futures of Entertainment Fellow and serves as editorial director at the higher education social network Lore run by Noodle.

What makes this site special is its timelessness. Popova publishes “evergreen” editorial, material that engages thought, broadens knowledge, encourages understanding, and sparks desire to learn more, easily accomplished through the multitude of links she includes for further reading. This is not a “What’s Hot” site, but rather a “What’s Meaningful, Thoughtful and Interesting” site.

Listen to Dorothy Parker’s The Telephone Call read by Tallulah Bankhead on Brain Pickings.