Synopses & Reviews
The Best American Magazine Writing 2011 will be one of our richest collections to date, full of award-winning pieces covering the year's most intriguing events. Some essays for the anthology created their own controversies, such as Michael Hastings's The Runaway General, which forced the resignation of General Stanley McChrystal within days of its being published in Rolling Stone; or Jane Mayer's Covert Operations ( The New Yorker), which exposed the Koch brothers' plans against a Barack Obama presidency and turned the duo into a powerful symbol of corporatized politics.
This year's award finalists winners include Scott Horton's investigation into inmate suicides at Guantanamo Bay prison ( Harper's Magazine) and Robert F. Worth's indispensable account of conflict and revolt in the Middle East ( The New York Times Magazine). It will feature an entertaining array of profiles, criticism, and cultural commentary, such as Christopher Hitchens's wry take on the politics of cancer ( Vanity Fair); Jonathan Van Meter's eye-opening portrait of Joan Rivers and her transgressive comedic genius ( New York Magazine); and Jonah Weiner's extraordinary musical biography of Kanye West, assembled from the artist's tweets and blog ( Slate). John Donvan and Caren Zucker's account of the world's first autism case in The Atlantic rounds out the volume, along with a selection of fiction, such as Paul Theroux's tale in the Virginia Quarterly Review of a madman art collector who acquires only to destroy the things he loves.
Now Featuring: Interviews with several authors selected for this anthology, speaking on their craft, the use of sources, courting controversy, and the challenges of journalistic writing in an age of extreme partisanship and internet news.
Synopsis
The Best American Magazine Writing 2011 contains award-winning features, exposes, and profiles along with extraordinary commentary, fiction, and poetry from America's leading magazines. This year's selections include stories that not only covered the news but also made news, including Michael Hastings's The Runaway General, which forced the resignation of General Stanley McChrystal, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, days after being published in Rolling Stone. Readers will also find Jane Mayer's Covert Operations ( The New Yorker), which exposed the Koch brothers' campaign against the Barack Obama presidency, turning the duo into a powerful symbol of modern, corporatized politics.
The anthology contains Scott Horton's investigation into inmate suicides at Guant?namo Bay prison ( Harper's Magazine); Christopher Hitchens's wryly moving take on the politics of cancer ( Vanity Fair); Jonathan Van Meter's eye-opening portrait of Joan Rivers and her transgressive comedic genius ( New York Magazine); and Jonah Weiner's extraordinary musical biography of Kanye West, assembled from the artist's tweets and blog posts ( Slate). John Donvan and Caren Zucker describe the world's first autism case in The Atlantic; Atul Gawande shares the modern medical profession's poignant struggle with death and dying in The New Yorker; and Paul Theroux spins a thrilling tale in the Virginia Quarterly Review of a mad collector who acquires works of art only to destroy them. Read together or one at a time, these pieces exemplify the wholly immersive experience of well-crafted magazine writing.
Synopsis
A collection of the year's best essays culled from periodicals.
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. Each volumes 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 Essays 2012 includes
Marcia Angell, Miah Arnold, Mark Doty, Joseph Epstein, Jonathan Franzen,
Malcolm Gladwell, Francine Prose, Lauren Slater,
Sandra Tsing Loh, Jose Antonio Vargas, and others
About the Author
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.