Cheri Lucas Rowlands

In an excerpt from his book, Our Wild Familiars: How Animals Are Adapting to Cities and Reshaping the Natural World, Dan Werb makes the case that raccoons—brushed off by most people as pests—are intelligent and adaptable animals. Werb shows how raccoons thrive in cities like Toronto, learning and unlearning habits as they navigate different microenvironments. A delightful read, full of Werb’s eye for scene and character. When I ask Gordon about raccoons, he sighs.

There’s a lot to dislike about the 2026 World Cup. The US’s xenophobic politics, for one: a Somali referee deported before the tournament even began; Iraq’s star player detained for seven hours at O’Hare; visas denied to Iranian staff and an Iraqi team photographer; and the entire Iranian team prohibited from training or even sleeping on American soil. Then there are the compulsory hydration breaks, which fans suspect exist mainly to generate more revenue.

What is it like to watch the World Cup in Gaza? Despite completely destroyed neighborhoods, the threat of bombs and missile strikes, scarce electricity, and unreliable internet, Palestinians are still finding ways to gather around a screen. For +972 Magazine, Ibtisam Mahdi talks to fans and players for whom soccer has become an act of defiance as much as a distraction.