Ariel Books

Ariel Levy, born in 1974, is an American journalist and staff writer for The New Yorker. Her writing career began after graduating from Wesleyan University, where her experiences with coed living arrangements influenced her views on sexuality. Levy has authored books such as "Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture" and "The Rules Do Not Apply: A Memoir." Her journalism has appeared in major publications including The Washington Post, Vogue, and The New York Times.

Levy's work often delves into themes of gender roles, lesbian history and culture, and contemporary American culture, including its relationship with sexuality and feminism. She has written profiles of various public figures and explored complex personal experiences, including a miscarriage and her former spouse's struggles with alcoholism, detailed in her memoir. Levy is openly bisexual and has written about her personal life, including her marriages and divorce. Her journalistic approach has sometimes drawn controversy, as seen in a piece about a missionary in Uganda.

Born in 1974, Ariel Levy grew up in Larchmont, New York, in a Jewish household. She attended Wesleyan University in the 1990s, graduating in 1996. Levy has stated that her time at Wesleyan, which featured coed showers, significantly shaped her perspectives on modern sexuality. Following her graduation, she briefly worked for Planned Parenthood, an experience she attributed to being a poor typist, before being hired by New York magazine.

As a staff writer at The New Yorker since 2008, Levy has penned profiles of diverse individuals, including politicians like Cindy McCain and Mike Huckabee, and cultural figures such as Edith Windsor and Caster Semenya. Her earlier work at New York magazine as a contributing editor for twelve years included pieces on artists like Ryan McGinley and Dash Snow, as well as writers and activists. Levy's reporting frequently examines American drug use, evolving gender roles, lesbian history, and the impact of popular culture, particularly its intersection with feminism. She has also critically analyzed phenomena like the "Girls Gone Wild" video series, exploring the perception of raunch culture among young women and its relation to feminist ideals.

Levy's writing also encompasses deeply personal narratives. Her 2017 memoir, "The Rules Do Not Apply," chronicles significant life events including a miscarriage, an extramarital affair, her spouse's alcoholism, and their subsequent divorce. Earlier, in 2013, The New Yorker published her essay "Thanksgiving in Mongolia," which recounted the loss of her unborn son during a solo trip. Levy also co-wrote Demi Moore's 2019 autobiography, "Inside Out." Her personal life, including her identity as an openly bisexual woman and her marital experiences, has been a subject within her published works.

Levy's journalistic work has occasionally generated significant debate. An article published in The New Yorker in 2020, which offered a sympathetic perspective on a missionary accused of practicing medicine without a license in Uganda, led to calls for retraction and accusations of misrepresentation from a group critical of the missionary. Beyond her written work, Levy has also engaged with other creative mediums. She collaborated with actor John Turturro to adapt Philip Roth's novel "Sabbath's Theater" for the stage, with the production premiering off-Broadway in 2023.