Finding Julian
Andrew Cotto loses his son in a museum—and finds a new approach to being a good dad.Upon hearing that our second child would be a boy, I walked out of the doctor’s office, crossed 8th Avenue, and...
View ArticleLamb Chops, Jezebel, and Kate Chopin
Is there such a thing as modern feminism?As a composition instructor, the only short-story I routinely keep in my repertoire is “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin. It’s a nifty little tale of an...
View ArticleWhat 10 Albums Would You Want on a Deserted Island?
Andrew Cotto has his ten albums. What are yours?I recently wrote about the Bruce Springsteen album Born to Run. It was the death of Clarence Clemons that inspired me to reflect on all the specific...
View ArticleGoing Out to Eat Has Nothing to Do With the Food
Andrew Cotto’s grand dreams of a fancy birthday dinner with his best friend, Mike, end in disappointment.I grew up with great food and really got into what I considered to be “fine dining” in my...
View ArticleA Conversation With Dennis Lehane
Andrew Cotto talks with the bestselling author about writing, books as movies, and the role of art in society.Dennis Lehane is the author of nine novels-including the New York Times bestsellers Gone,...
View ArticleObama’s Speech Won’t Matter Because He’s ‘Black’
Andrew Cotto argues that there are some people for whom it does not matter what the president does or does not say; they only care about the color of his skin.President Obama will be addressing a...
View ArticleThis Is not My Story
Andrew Cotto has his story about middle-class debt, but that’s not what this is about.I was born middle class. My father was a music teacher who drove a Greyhound bus in the summer. As a housewife, my...
View ArticleA Social Person’s Social Media Problem
Andrew Cotto is a success at being social, which makes his apparent failure at social media all the more puzzling.I’m a social person. I do this well. I learned at the hip of my mother, who looked...
View ArticleElephant on a Hot Tin Roof
Andrew Cotto notes the similarities between Tennessee William’s play and his view of the Republican Party.Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is a legendary play about a wealthy Southern family in the 1950s...
View ArticleA Bloop Single Cost Me My Perfect Game, But I Redeemed Myself In My Book
Andrew Cotto, in a post on Deadspin’s “Glory Days.”Our friends at Deadspin run a series called “Glory Days”, that features readers’ tales of momentary sports glory. This one comes to us from author...
View ArticleJamal Simmons on Being a Good Man in Politics
Andrew Cotto talks man-to-man with political analyst Jamal Simmons about the greatest social problems facing America, President Obama’s legacy, and what it takes to be a good man in politics.Editor’s...
View Article20 Dads Share Their Favorite Children’s Books
Looking for a book to read to your children? These 20 dads share their favorites.Since before Moses and the stone tablets fathers have been telling stories and reading to their children. It’s...
View ArticleFinding Julian
It took the terror of losing his young son at a museum to make Andrew Cotto realize what it meant to be mentor and a father.—Upon hearing our second child would be a boy, I walked out of the doctor’s...
View Article500 Thursdays
For Andrew Cotto’s daughter, every Thursday is a special day.My daughter was born on a Thursday. We’d gone to the hospital with still plenty of Wednesday left, but, on that day, complications arrived...
View ArticleLosing My Best Friend: A Pain Without Name
Embed from Getty Images—This piece by Andrew Cotto was originally published on Talkspace.The text message hit like cannon fire from close range. I crumbled to the ground, holding my stomach. It was an...
View ArticleMy Post-Trump Candidate Has Arrived…
Spoiler: I don’t think my Post-Trump candidate will be the Democrat’s nominee for President in 2020. I suspect the Democratic ticket in 2020 will be headed by Joe Biden with Kamala Harris as his...
View ArticleLet’s Just Go with A$AP Joey and Save the F#&king World
Let’s break some traditions, people. Let’s shake some shit up. Let’s go down the road less traveled. Let’s call off the Democratic primaries – their lame-ass debates and bickering camps and Us vs. Us...
View ArticleBlue America
Everybody’s talking black and white, but I’m thinking more about blue. Black folks invented the Blues. This music is one of America’s most enduring and celebrated art forms, yet its origins should not...
View ArticleMake America Exceptional Again
Ann Coulter made fun of me once. It was back in 2014, and she had, apparently, taken offense to my article in Salon.com, My American Exceptionalism Fantasy Is Over, where I argued that – based on two...
View ArticlePasta Mike: A Story of Friendship & Loss
The text message hit like cannon fire from close range. I crumbled to the ground, holding my stomach. It was an early morning winter in the kitchen of our Brooklyn apartment. My wife and two kids...
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