Synopses & Reviews
For the past year, a group of high school students met at a publishing house in San Francisco every Monday night to read literary magazines, chapbooks, graphic novels, and countless articles. This committee was assisted by a group of students that met in the basement of a robot shop in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Together, and under the guidance of guest editor Adam Johnson, these high schoolers selected the contents ofand#160;
The Best American Nonrequired Readingand#160;2015.and#160;The writing in this book is very essential, if not required, like visiting the Louvre if youandrsquo;re in Paris. In any case, nothing in this book takes place in Paris, as far as we can recall, but it does feature an elephant hunt, the fall of a reality-TV star, a walk through Ethiopia, and much more of what Johnson calls andldquo;the most important examinations in life.andrdquo;and#160;
The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2015and#160;includes
LESLEY NNEKA ARIMAH, DANIEL ALARCandOacute;N, BOX BROWN, REBECCA CURTIS,and#160;VICTOR LODATO, CLAUDIA RANKINE, PAUL SALOPEK, PAUL TOUGH, WELLS TOWERand#160;
and othersand#160;
Adam Johnson, guest editor, teaches creative writing at Stanford University. He is the author ofand#160;Fortune Smiles, Emporium, Parasites Likes Us,and#160;andand#160;The Orphan Masterandrsquo;s Son,and#160;which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in fiction. He has received a Whiting Writersandrsquo; Award and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation. His work has appeared inand#160;Esquire,and#160;Harperandrsquo;s Magazine,and#160;Playboy,and#160;GQ,and#160;theand#160;Paris Review,and#160;Granta,and#160;Tin House,and#160;theand#160;New York Times,and#160;andand#160;Theand#160;Best American Short Stories.
Review
andquot;The latest annual roundup is more ambitious and conceptually audacious than is usual for any andquot;Best Americanandquot; series...The spirit of discovery makes this a good launching point for readers interested in the genreand#39;s variety and limitless possibility.andquot; --
Kirkus andquot;Ever-essential...the widest-ranging comics collection of its kind...selected pieces are varied and absolutely vital...McCloudandrsquo;s entertaining and conversational introductions to each section educate and enlighten...offers readers the opportunity to discover new styles and a sense of the range of genres in the graphic novel world.andquot; --Publishers Weekly
Review
andquot;Keeps raising the bar for comics as an art form.andquot; --
USA Today andquot;A wide-ranging journey of 35 comics and interstitial text pieces that thoroughly engage the lifetime comics reader and the uninitiated alike...One splendidly eclectic trek, with McCloud as our especially articulate Sherpa.andquot; --The Washington Postand#160;andquot;A gorgeous book that does right by its subject matter...With its smart format and context, and#39;The Best American Comics 2014and#39; not only manages to unite clashing styles under one roof, it also makes an intimidatingly vast world of gorgeous, often challenging art accessible to a general audience.andquot; --The Denver Postand#160;andquot;This edition may be the best one yet...[McCloud] constructs this collection in an interesting and thoughtful way that makes these excerpts of some of the yearandrsquo;s best comics fit together in a cohesive manner.andquot; --Miami Heraldand#160;andquot;If thereand#39;s one thing Scott McCloud is better at than making comics, itand#39;sexplaining comics, which makes him the best possible editor for this yearand#39;s Best American Comics. McCloudand#39;s volume is surprising, delightful, diverse, brave and endlessly wonderful.andquot; --Boing, Boingand#160;andquot;The Best American Comics 2014 is the best edition of The Best American Comics to ever be published...The best book Iand#39;ve ever read in the whole Best American series. Itand#39;s informative, funny, surprising, and a satisfying reading experience on its own. This should be the book that every Best American guest editor aspires to emulate in years to come.andquot; --The Strangerand#160;andquot;Whether you want a laugh, intrigue, romance, or just plain weird, thereandrsquo;s something for everyone in this hardcover book.andquot; --The Awesomer
andquot;McCloud could be the mediumandrsquo;s foremost deep thinker...There is much to be gained from his comprehensive embrace of the form and his nuanced, knowledgeable, and friendly essays preceding each of the themed sections...A master class in how to find the universally accessible in the intimately personal and transform images into emotions...Every page drives home the point that, if you can add only one book to your adult graphic-novel collection this year, this has got to be it.andquot; --Booklist, starred review
andquot;The latest annual roundup is more ambitious and conceptually audacious than is usual for any andquot;Best Americanandquot; series...The spirit of discovery makes this a good launching point for readers interested in the genreand#39;s variety and limitless possibility.andquot; --Kirkus
andquot;Ever-essential...the widest-ranging comics collection of its kind...selected pieces are varied and absolutely vital...McCloudandrsquo;s entertaining and conversational introductions to each section educate and enlighten...offers readers the opportunity to discover new styles and a sense of the range of genres in the graphic novel world.andquot; --Publishers Weekly
Review
"
If you need to fall in love with reading again-or just want a reminder that high school students deserve a lot more than their reading lists give them-
then THE BEST AMERICAN NONREQUIRED READING 2012 is the book for you."
-Bust "As a devoted fan of this series (this is the 11th volume), I can report that this year's anthology of 32 selections might be the best yet."
-Elizabeth Taylor, Chicago Tribune “An eclectic annual that will leave readers marveling over many of the discoveries...category-defying... All readers will find their own favorites that justify the collection as a whole.”
-Kirkus Reviews "Lively, eclectic and surprising..."
-Minneapolis Star Tribune
Synopsis
Pulphead author John Jeremiah Sullivan, "among the best young non-fiction writers in English" (The New York Times), picks the year's best essays selected from hundereds of magazines, journals, and websites.
Synopsis
“A creature from an alternative universe . . . wanting to understand what is on the American mind should rush to the nearest bookstore and buy a copy of this distinguished anthology . . . Exhilarating.” — Publishers Weekly The Best American Essays 2014 is selected and introduced by John Jeremiah Sullivan, author of the critically acclaimed essay collection Pulphead. The New York Times placed Sullivan “among the best young nonfiction writers in English” and the New York Times Book Review heralded Pulphead as “the best, and most important, collection of magazine writing since Wallaces A Supposedly Fun Thing Ill Never Do Again.”
Synopsis
Scott McCloud, "just about the smartest guy in comics" (Frank Miller), picks the best graphic pieces of the year.
Synopsis
and#8220;Itand#8217;s the perfect book to pick up to restore your faith in comics or help show infinite diversity in infinite combinations on display on paper using the worldand#8217;s greatest artform.and#8221; and#8212; Comics Bulletin The Best American Comics showcases the work of both established and up-and-coming contributors and highlights both fiction and nonfiction and#8212; from graphic novels, pamphlet comics, newspapers, magazines, minicomics, and the Web and#8212; to make a unique, stunning collection. Frank Miller (Sin City, 300) called guest editor Scott McCloud and#8220;just about the smartest guy in comics.and#8221;
Synopsis
Adam Johnson, author of the Pulitzer Prizeandndash;winning
The Orphan Masterandrsquo;s Son, works with group of high school students out of 826 San Francisco to select the yearandrsquo;s best newand#160;fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, and category-defying gems aimed at readers 15 and up.
Synopsis
andldquo;Full of delights . . . A joy to read.andrdquo; andmdash; The Stranger Guest editor Adam Johnson, author of the Pulitzer Prizeandndash;winning The Orphan Masterandrsquo;s Son, works with a group of high school students out of 826 San Francisco to select The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2015. The BANR Committee gathers weekly in the basement of a small publishing house in San Francisco to read literary magazines, chapbooks, graphic novels, blogs, transcripts, and anything else that strikes their fancy. They are assisted by a group of 826 students that meet in the basement of a robot shop in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Synopsis
A selection of the best writing, including fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, and blogs, published during 2010. Edited by Dave Eggers.
Synopsis
The Best American Series®
First, Best, and Best-Selling
The Best American series is the premier annual showcase for the countrys finest short fiction and nonfiction. For each volume, the very best pieces are selected by a leading writer in the field, making the Best American series the most respected—and most popular—of its kind.
The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2011 includes
Daniel Alarcón, Clare Beams, Sloane Crosley, Anthony Doerr, Neil Gaiman, Mohammed Hanif, Mac McClelland, Michael Paterniti, Olivier Schrauwen,
Gary Shteyngart, and others
Synopsis
The Best American Series®
First, Best, and Best-Selling
The Best American series is the premier annual showcase for the country’s finest short fiction and nonfiction. Each volume’s series editor selects notable works from hundreds of magazines, journals, and websites. A special guest editor, a leading writer in the field, then chooses the best twenty or so pieces to publish. This unique system has made the Best American series the most respected — and most popular — of its kind.
The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2012 includes
Kevin Brockmeier, Judy Budnitz, Junot Díaz, Louise Erdrich,
Nora Krug, Julie Otsuka, Eric Puchner, George Saunders,
Adrian Tomine, Jess Walter, and others
About the Author
John Jeremiah Sullivan is a contributing writer for the New York Times Magazine and the southern editor of the Paris Review. He writes for GQ, Harpers Magazine, and Oxford American and is the author of Blood Horses and Pulphead, a 2011 National Book Critics Circle Award nominee. ROBERT ATWAN has been the series editor of The Best American Essays since its inception in 1986. He has edited numerous literary anthologies and written essays and reviews for periodicals nationwide.