Archive 2022 - The Atavist Magazine

Archive

2022

The Curious Case of Nebraska Man

A fossil tooth, a splashy debate, and a strange chapter in America’s long history of science denialism.

by Madeline Bodin

A Matter of Honor

Why were three Afghan women brutally murdered at the edge of Europe? A journey from Mazar-i-Sharif to Istanbul to Athens in search of answers.

by Sarah Souli

True Grit

When a storm surge swept dozens of cattle and wild horses from the coast of North Carolina, no one expected survivors. Then hoofprints appeared in the sand.

by J.B. MacKinnon

Alone at the Edge of the World

Susie Goodall wanted to circumnavigate the globe in her sailboat without stopping. She didn’t bargain for what everyone else wanted.

by Cassidy Randall

Fault Lines

A pioneering humanities magnet program shaped a generation of students and brought acclaim to a public high school in Los Angeles. But beneath the excellence lurked a culture of abuse.

by Seyward Darby

Andres Beckett dreamed of competing in a punishing rodeo event known as the Suicide Race. But more difficult than charging down the race’s dangerously steep track was earning a spot on the starting line.

by Jana Meisenholder

Follow the Leader

In the waning days of the Cold War, Rainer Sonntag helped fuel a neo-Nazi movement that still plagues Germany today. He was also a Communist spy—and worked for Vladimir Putin.

by Leigh Baldwin and Sean Williams

The Fugitive Next Door

Tim Brown seemed like a typical Florida retiree—he loved doting on his wife, fishing with friends, and flying his plane. But his life was built on a secret.

by Greg Donahue

A Crime Beyond Belief

A Harvard-trained lawyer was convicted of committing bizarre home invasions. Psychosis may have compelled him to do it. But in a case that became a public sensation, he wasn’t the only one who seemed to lose touch with reality.

by Katia Savchuk

The Caregivers

An imprisoned artist, the couple who saved his life, and the extraordinary gift he gave in return.

by Kelly Loudenberg

The Voyagers

In 1945, a father and his young son set out across the frigid Bering Strait, fleeing Soviet Russia in search of a better life in America. Neither knew how perilous their journey would become.

by Bill Donahue

The Shadow and The Ghost

A woman who called herself Reverend Mother claimed that she could perform miracles. The price was her followers’ adoration and obedience—and in some cases their lives.

by Christine Grimaldi