Our Story

Photos of Yale University, and a cover of The Yale Review.

JOIN A CONVERSATION 200 YEARS IN THE MAKING. At The Yale Review, we believe in the power of connecting great minds across disciplines, backgrounds, and generations. As a renowned journal of literature and ideas, TYR has been privileged to publish both established names and rising literary talent, including Virginia Woolf, Robert Lowell, Thomas Mann, Bayard Rustin, Louise Glück, Adrienne Rich, José Ortega y Gassett, Joyce Carol Oates, James Merrill, Cathy Park Hong, Sheila Heti, Garth Greenwell, and Namwali Serpell. Today, TYR continues to evolve under our editor Meghan O’Rourke, an acclaimed poet, memoirist, and critic.

O’Rourke ushered TYR into its third century of publication by relaunching the magazine in May 2021 as a print and digital publication, with a website that features original content as well as gems from TYR's incomparable archive. TYR remains committed to a tradition of editorial excellence and painstaking curation, a site where readers can discover new literature by the best writers of our era alongside engaged, passionate criticism that is beautifully written and powerfully thought.

Since its founding as The Christian Spectator in 1819, TYR has undergone many changes, becoming The New Englander in 1843 and taking on its current name in 1892. Its modern incarnation was established in 1911; over the past century its focus has shifted with each new editor, evolving from a journal of economics into a journal of literature and ideas. Throughout its illustrious history, though, it has continued to honor a tradition of excellence and intellectual adventure.

The founding editor of the modern TYR was the literary critic Wilbur Cross. Subsequent editors have included Helen MacAfee, David Morris Potter, Paul Pickrel, John J.E. Palmer, Kai Erikson, Penelope Laurans, Harold Augenbraum, and the poet and librettist J. D. McClatchy. Each editor built upon the journal’s rich heritage and continued to broaden its reach.

Under O'Rourke's leadership, TYR aims to discover a new generation of writers and thinkers. Committed to nurturing cross-disciplinary conversations, and pushing boundaries, we are proud to maintain our tradition as a forum for the dynamic exchange of ideas. We hope you’ll join us by becoming a member or subscribing today.


The editors of The Yale Review, its writers, and its readers are indebted to the following donors for their sustained and generous support.

The late Joseph F. Cullman III
Elyssa Friedland '03
The Estate of James I. Merrill
Zibby Owens '98
The Smart Family Foundation




Masthead

Editor
Meghan O’Rourke

Deputy Editor
Elliott Holt

Managing Editor
Will Frazier

Consulting Editors
Dan Fox
Jill Hunter Pellettieri
James Surowiecki

Senior Editors
Kate Bolick
Sam Huber
Maggie Millner

Art Editor
Eugenia Bell

Copy Editors
Susan Miller
Martin Schneider

Assistant Editors
Kathy Chow
Jessikah Díaz
Samuel Ernest
Amanda Griffin
Jack Hanson
Eve Houghton
Lacey Jones
Caitlin Kossmann
Spencer Lee Lenfield
Maggie McGowan
Talin Tahajian

Editorial Assistant
Sonia Gadre

Operations Manager
Ashleigh Cohen

Editor at Large
Katie Kitamura

Contributing Editors
Aria Aber
Eula Biss
Ama Codjoe
Rachel Mannheimer
Roger Reeves

Undergraduate Fellows
Margot Lee
Merit Onyekwere
Maia Siegel
Isabella Smeets
Christion Zappley

Design Consultant
Pentagram


Editorial Board
Harold Augenbraum
Rizvana Bradley
David Bromwich
Gregory Crewdson
Richard Deming
Kai Erikson
Anne Fadiman
Hussein Fancy
Emily Greenwood
Langdon Hammer
Dolores Hayden
Michael Kelleher
Noreen Khawaja
Nancy Kuhl
Joseph LaPalombara
Penelope Laurans
Marci Shore
Christian Wiman
John Witt
Timothy Young