21-03-2025
Here's what leading Bostonians like to read, eat, and do in the city
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TODAY'S STARTING POINT
Confession time: I wrote this newsletter from a place that is not Boston.
I'll be there soon, it's true. But I've felt some self-consciousness about writing about a city before actually moving there. Don't worry: I'm no stranger. Growing up in Maine, I visited Boston often as a kid, and lived there for a year before college. Still, I'm anxious to get to know it better.
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So to help me get a jump start, I reached out to elected officials, business and community leaders, university presidents, sports figures, and other influential Bostonians for recommendations. I asked them to tell me something they've read, eaten, heard, seen, or visited that helped them get to know the city they inhabit. Today's newsletter shares their responses.
Books
I often understand a place better when I read about it, and several people I reached out to recommended books.
Gayatri Patnaik
, the director of Beacon Press, suggests '
Jessica Tang
, who leads American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts, recommends '
If you prefer fiction,
Governor Maura Healey
admires the novels of
Tiya Miles
, a Harvard historian, recommends '
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History
Boston is synonymous with American history.
James Rooney
, president of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, recommends the
Marcelo Suárez-Orozco
, the chancellor of UMass Boston, recommends reading the Declaration of Rights
But the city didn't stop making history in the 1700s.
Mayor Michelle Wu
recommends the
If museums and archives sound too dusty, try getting your history on Instagram instead.
Vickie Alani
, a senior principal at CBT Architects, recommends
Art
Boston boasts more than a dozen art museums, but several people pointed me to the
Even if you've already been, as I have, museum director
Peggy Fogelman
suggests taking another look at an 1888 portrait of Gardner, the collector who started the museum. 'Mrs. Gardner's bare arms and a plunging neckline sparked salacious rumors among her contemporaries,' Fogelman wrote.
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The museum, which the eclectic Gardner designed to mimic a Venetian palace, is itself a work of art. In the atrium, 'soaring glass ceilings and immaculate, lush gardens reflect the passionate vision of a woman ahead of her time,'
Susan Goldberg
, the president of GBH, told me. 'Sitting in the garden,' says
Matthew Teitelbaum
, who directs the
Others suggest going outside.
Lee Pelton
, who runs The Boston Foundation, recommends
Food
Instead of feasting your eyes, maybe you're just looking to feast.
Alex Cora
, the manager of the Red Sox, praised chef Massimo Tiberi's award-winning
For something lower-key,
David Nagahiro
of CBT, the architecture firm, recommends
Music
For an auditory experience,
Sally Kornbluth
, MIT's president, recommends the
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Your ideas
Every list is partial, and now it's your turn to add more. Send your ideas about what to read, watch, eat, and do around the city to
🧩 7 Across:
| 🌞 46°
POINTS OF INTEREST
Tesla is recalling nearly all of its futuristic-style Cybertrucks — this is the eighth recall for the model.
SOPHIE PARK/NYT
Boston and New England
Unmasked:
The names of several more men accused of paying for sex at a Cambridge brothel ring
School's out:
The Boston School Committee approved a controversial plan
No answers:
The German national with a green card ICE arrested this month in New Hampshire was mistreated and still hasn't had
A 'secret society':
Inside the federal racketeering case
Trump administration
Stayed:
A judge ordered the administration not to deport a Georgetown University researcher here on a visa whom ICE arrested this month. The administration has accused him of spreading 'Hamas propaganda.' (
Conflict of interest:
Defense Department officials plan to brief Elon Musk about top-secret military plans if a war breaks out with China, where Musk does business. A Pentagon spokesman denied it. (
'Radical mayor':
The White House
Alzheimer's:
An experimental treatment appears to delay symptoms in people genetically disposed to the disease. But Trump's efforts to slash research funding could imperil it. (
Kid you not:
Musk's estranged daughter, who is transgender, called the administration's treatment of trans people 'cartoonishly evil.' (
The Nation and the World
Crazy glue:
Tesla recalled nearly all of its Cybertrucks over an adhesive issue that can cause a panel
Polling the dice:
Mark Carney, Canada's new prime minister, will dissolve parliament and call new elections. His Liberal Party has gained support amid Trump's criticisms of Canada. (
Corruption concerns:
Israel's cabinet voted to fire the head of the country's domestic intelligence agency, which is investigating two of the prime minister's aides. (
BESIDE THE POINT
By Teresa Hanafin, Globe Staff
🏳️🌈
Safe spaces:
Three of the five most LGBTQ-friendly colleges, as ranked by the Princeton Review, are in New England. Tough, but tolerant. (
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Top dog:
French bulldogs are once again the
🥺
Sad sacks:
Americans still are among the unhappiest people in the developed world. But those stoic Nordics are having a good time. (
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What did you say?
We measured
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Things to do:
Jazz at the BSO, the Addams Family at the Wang, World Figure Skating Championships at TD Garden.
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Things to watch:
'Anora,' 'Wicked,' and more new and good movies and TV shows to
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Couch viewing:
No need to travel to see inside the world's museums; Google has 3D immersive exhibits. (
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🎸
Blind date:
'When someone is in a band, it gives them major attraction points.' A metalhead and a karaoke singer
🎵
Shaq can sing?
March Madness-like brackets are proliferating. Here's one that's looking for the best song by an athlete. (
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Superfoods for spring:
Here are
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