The Cut’s 20 Most-Read Stories in 2023The articles our readers were most deeply engaged with this year, from “It” Girls and Ozempic to rules for modern living.
Bythe Cut
sex diaries
The 69 Best Sex Diaries of All TimeThese are the diaries that blew up our group texts, inspired an internet conspiracy or two, and still make us blush all these years later.
The Age GappersThey say they’re happy. Why is it so hard to believe them?
ByLila Shapiro
year in review
Woman in RetrogradeSomewhere in the year of girl math, girl dinner, and hot-girl walks with the girlies, maturity became a dirty word.
ByIsabel Cristo
health
An American Girlhood in the Ozempic EraParents, activists, and doctors are divided about giving children new weight-loss drugs. At age 13, Maggie Ervie became one of the first to take them.
The Rise of the Accidentally Permissive ParentSome moms and dads who strive to be “gentle parents” unknowingly turn into indulgent ones, largely because gentle parenting is just too hard.
ByElizabeth Passarella
encounter
A Soft New WorldInside sonia louise davis’s Queens Museum studio, large-scale textiles radiate warmth.
The Joy of Being Alicia KeysTwenty years after her debut and with a new musical out loosely based on her life, the singer finally learns to take it easy.
ByAsia Milia Ware
first person
Happily Ever DivorcedAfter my Instagrammable marriage fell apart, my ex-husband and I finally found peace — off the grid.
Maya Kowalski’s $211 Million VerdictA Florida jury found Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg liable on all counts, including contributing to her mother’s suicide.
ByDyan Neary
health
What Happened to Maya KowalskiWhen a 10-year-old girl complained of mysterious pain, a doctor suspected child abuse. How far would she go to prove it?
ByDyan Neary
culture
Erewhon’s SecretsJapanese utopians. Corporate glow-ups. $400 smoothies. The strange history of the world’s most cultish grocery store.
The Rise and Fall of ‘Dr. Roxy’When plastic surgeon Dr. Katharine Grawe rose to TikTok fame, her OR seemed busier than ever. Until a record of botched surgeries caught up to her.
‘Those Pictures Do Not Leave My Mind’The last message Ofri Levy got from her brother was about Hamas entering his home. Then, she started seeing photos of him appear online.