Other Best American Series

The Best American
Essays 2011

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Edited by the award-winning and critically-acclaimed Edwidge Danticat, author of Brother, I Am Dying, this classic collection of essays showcases the year's best.

Foreword by Robert Atwan

Introduction by Edwidge Danticat

HILTON ALS. Buddy Ebsen from The Believer

MISCHA BERLINSKI. Port-au-Prince: The Moment from The New York Review of Books

KATY BUTLER. What Broke My Father’s Heart from The New York Times Magazine

STEVEN CHURCH. Auscultation 25 from The Pedestrian

PAUL CRENSHAW. After the Ice from Southern Humanities Review

TOI DERRICOTTE. Beds 42 from Creative Nonfiction

MEENAKSHI GIGI DURHAM. Grieving  from Harvard Review

BERNADETTE ESPOSITO. A-LOC from The North American Review

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS. Topic of Cancer from Vanity Fair

PICO IYER. Chapels  from Portland Magazine

VICTOR LAVALLE. Long Distance from Granta

CHARLIE LEDUFF. What Killed Aiyana Stanley-Jones? from Mother Jones

CHANG-RAE LEE. Magical Dinners  from The New Yorker

MADGE MCKEITHEN. What Really Happened from TriQuarterly

CARYL PHILLIPS. Rude Am I in My Speech from Salmagundi

BRIDGET POTTER. Lucky Girl  from Guernica

LIA PURPURA. There Are Things Awry Here from Orion

RACHEL RIEDERER. Patient from The Missouri Review

PATRICIA SMITH. Pearl, Upward from Crab Orchard Review

ZADIE SMITH. Generation Why? from The New York Review of Books

SUSAN STRAIGHT. Travels with My Ex from The Believer

CHRISTY VANNOY. A Personal Essay by a Personal Essay from McSweeney’s

JERALD WALKER. Unprepared from Harvard Review

RESHMA MEMON YAQUB. The Washing  from The Washington Post Magazine

 

Contributors’ Notes

Notable Essays of 2010

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Other distinguished essays, selected by series editor Robert Atwan.

A-B
Abildskov, Marilyn The Summer of Barbeques Hotel Amerika, Spring.
Aciman, André My Monet Moment Condé Nast Traveler, September.
Akst, Daniel America: Land of Loners? Wilson Quarterly, Summer.
Aldrich, Marcia My Dog Anubis Northwest Review, vol. 48, no. 2.
Allison, Sue Dream Work Harvard Review, no. 38.
Antonetta, Susanne Hosts Image, Spring.
Appel, Jacob M. Judy & Malcolm: Maybe a Love Story Lake Effect, Spring.
Arthur, Chris Level Crossing New Hibernia Review, Summer.
Backous, Allison Lament Image, Fall.
Barber, Phyllis The Knife Handler Agni, no. 71.
Barker, Wendy Let’s Party Cerise Press, Summer.
Barnes, Kim On Language: A Short Meditation Fugue, Winter/Spring.
Bathon, Greg An Incident on the Mysore Road Fifth Wednesday, Spring.
Batuman, Elif Kafka’s Last Trial New York Times Magazine, September 26.
Baude, William Last Chance on Death Row Wilson Quarterly, Autumn.
Bausch, Richard How to Write in 700 Easy Lessons Atlantic, October.
Bedard, Brian Aisle 22 South Dakota Review
Benko, Jessica Mother of God, Child of Zeus Virginia Quarterly Review, Fall (online).
Bergdale, Abbie J . Stuck Town Gargoyle, no. 56.
Bloch, Lucienne S. 365 New Words a Year: October North American Review, Summer.
Bonifaz, Deirdre Letters from Salinger Massachusetts Review, vol. 51, no. 4.
Bonomo, Joe Occasional Prayer Fourth Genre, Spring.
Borich, Barrie Jean Navigating Jazz Indiana Review, Winter.
Breytenbach, Breyten Obamandela Harper's
Brieschke, Patricia All of Me The Sun
Brombert, Victor Virginia Woolf — “Death is the Enemy” Hudson Review, Autumn.
Brown, James S. Riverboat Pilot Sewanee Review, Fall.
Bushnell, Jack The Swallows of Selborne Gettysburg Review, Spring.
C-D
Cappello, Mary Squalor Hotel Amerika, Fall
Castro, Joy Hip Joints Indiana Review, Winter
Chambers, Veronica Small Wonder Vogue, May.
Chariott, Katherine Lien Daughters Made of Dust (Collateral Damage) TLR, Spring.
Chee, Alexander I, Reader Morning News, November 29 (online).
Claassen, Carol Terminal Punctuation Pinch, Spring.
Clark, Marisa P. Here Come the Brides Apalachee Review, no. 60.
Coakley, Tom How to Speak about the Secret Desert Wars Fourth Genre, Spring.
Coates, Ta-Nehisi The Littlest Schoolhouse Atlantic, July/August.
Cohen, Garnett Kilberg Alzheimer’s Daughter PMS, no. 10.
Cohen, Michael On Not Being E. B. White, Kenyon Review, Fall.
Cottle, Thomas J . Our Thoughts and Our Prayers Antioch Review, Spring.
Couturier, Lisa Dark Horse Orion, July/August.
Cronin, M. Eileen In Annie’s Hands. Third Coast, Spring.
Crowther, Hal In Defense of Straight-Chuters Blackbird, Spring.
Crutchfield, J . R. Sirens Epoch, vol. 59, no. 1.
Danko, Michael Red Tusculum Review, no. 6.
Dante, Ed The Shadow Scholar Chronicle Review, November 19.
De Botton, Alain Improvable Feasts Harper’s, August.
Delbanco, Nicholas Conclusion Salmagundi, Spring/ Summer.
Devers, A. N. On the Outskirts Tin House, vol. 12, no. 1.
Disler, Michelle Building Massachusetts Review, vol. 51, no. 1.
Dodd, Elizabeth Concentric Canyon Ascent, April 19.
Dostert, Mark Behavioral Management Cimarron Review, Summer.
Doty, Mark The Unwriteable Granta, no. 110, Spring.
Doucet, Therese Farzad, Son of Glory Bayou, no. 53.
Doyle, Brian Go-o-o-o, Lemmings! American Scholar, Winter.
Ducornet, Rikki Book of Origins (Two Essays: Seed and Nakht) Pen America, no. 12.
Duncan, Martha Grace Beauty in the Dark of Night: The Pleasures of Form in Criminal Law Emory Law Journal, vol. 59, no. 5.
Duraj, Halina The Company She Keeps Hayden’s Ferry Review, Spring/Summer.
Dutton, Janet Abbott Old Enough Prairie Schooner, Winter.
D’Agata, John What Happens There Believer, January.
E-F
Eastman, Krista Securing Mutual Response Briar Cliff Review, no. 22.
Edwards, John M. Revolutionary Wrath: A (Seriously) Biased Revision of the Burr vs. Hamilton Duel Based Upon an Old High- School Term Paper Essays and Fictions, Winter.
Ely, Scott Drinking at the Fountain of Youth Kenyon Review, Fall.
Ephron, Nora My Life as an Heiress New Yorker, October 11.
Epstein, Joseph The Symphony of a Lifetime Notre Dame Magazine, Spring.
Ertegun, Leyla Projections Believer, March/April.
Erwin, Robert Having It All Massachusetts Review, vol. 51, no. 2.
Estilai, Ellen Front Yard Fruit Alimentum, Winter.
Falco, Edward An Elliptical Essay on Violence Virginia Quarterly Review, Spring.
Faludi, Susan American Electra Harper’s, October.
Ferguson, Niall Complexity and Collapse Foreign Affairs, March/April.
Ferrence, Matt Spaces Between Blue Mesa Review, Spring.
Fincke, Gary The History of Lie Detection North Dakota Quarterly, vol. 75, nos. 3 & 4.
Finger, Anne Walking to Abbasanta Seneca Review, Spring.
Fischer, Edward H. Matterhorn Dreams Minnetonka Review, Winter.
Fogel, Aaron Some Elementary Chords: Unanchored Western Humanities Review, Winter.
Foley, Catherine Home to Ring New Hibernia Review, Autumn.
Frazier, Ian On the Prison Highway New Yorker, August 30.
Fryxell, David A. Both Sides Now Desert Exposure, September.
G-H
Gaitskill, Mary Lost Cat Granta
Garcia, J. Malcolm A Simple Explanation Ascent
Gawande, Atul Letting Go The New Yorker
Gessner, David All My Walks Ecotone, Spring.
Gilbreath, Aaron Dreams of the Atomic Era Cincinnati Review, Summer.
Giraldi, William The Physics of Speed Antioch Review, Fall.
Girdish, Jen The Impossible Return Post Road, no. 19.
Gladwell, Malcolm Small Change New Yorker, October 4.
Goldman, Anne Questions of Transport Georgia Review, Spring.
Gonzalez, Elisa All the Words I Knew Harvard Review, no. 38.
Gonzalez, J . David How Can I Help You? Southern Indiana Review, Spring.
Gopnik, Adam Van Gogh’s Ear New Yorker, January 4.
Gordon, Emily Fox Here Again Boulevard, Spring.
Gottlieb, Chris Reflections on Judging Mothering University of Baltimore Law Review, Spring.
Grandbois, Peter Driving to Puerto Rico Potomac Review, Spring.
Greif, Mark What Was the Hipster? New York Magazine, November 1.
Gross, Kenneth Shadows Yale Review, July.
Hagel, Caia Desire Denver Quarterly, vol. 44, no. 4.
Hall, Linda How to End Up Alone Southwest Review, vol. 95, no. 3.
Hanick, Riley The Pradelles Sonora Review
Harris, Daniel Celebrity Clothing Salmagundi, Fall/ Winter.
Harvey, Steven Blood Mountain Ascent, March 9.
Haunton, Gladys Glazing Hunger Mountain, no. 15.
Hedges, Christopher Celebrity Culture and the Obama Brand Tikkun, January/February.
Hillringhouse, Mark Passaic River Journal American Poetry Review, January/February.
Hoagland, Edward Last Call Harper’s, May.
Holger, Inez The Origin of Fear Bellevue Literary Review, Fall.
Hood, Ann Long Beautiful Hair Amoskeag, Spring.
Howell, Billy How to Leave Your Mother Florida Review, Winter.
Hower, Edward Children of the Maze Five Points, vol. 13, no. 3.
Hoy I I, Pat C. Images on the Danube Sewanee Review, Fall.
Hryniewicz-Yarbrough, Ewa The Bearable Lightness of Being American Scholar, Summer.
I-J
Ireland, Tom Famous Missouri Review, Spring.
Jones, Jeremy B. The Resurrection of Ray Jones Ruminate, Spring.
Jordan, Pat My Father, the Grifter Men’s Journal, January.
Judt, Tony Night New York Review of Books, January 14.
Junod, Tom Invasion Esquire, August.
K-L
Kanner, Rebecca Safety War, Literature and the Arts, no. 22.
Keizer, Garret The Courtesy of God Lapham’s Quarterly, Winter.
Kennedy, Thomas E. Adventures of an Old Dude New Letters, vol. 76, no. 2.
Kevin, Brian Songs Primarily in the Key of Life Colorado Review, Summer.
Kim, Eson Fixed Everything Cream City Review, Spring.
Kingsolver, Barbara Fresh Water National Geographic, April.
Kittredge, William Going to the Coast TriQuarterly
Klass, Sheila Solomon Aging and the Inaccessible City Health Affairs, September.
Kleege, Georgina Blind Faith Yale Review, July.
Kroll-Zaidi, Rafil Jukeboxes on the Moon Triple Canopy, June.
Krznaric, Roman Empathy with the Enemy Pedestrian, no. 1.
Kupperman, Kim Dana An Occurrence at Avignon Normal School, Fall.
Labash, Matt Living Like a Liberal Weekly Standard, July 19.
Lago, Don Storm Pattern Alaska Quarterly Review, Fall/Winter.
Lapham, Lewis H. Figures of Speech Harper’s, November.
Lathbury, Roger Betraying Salinger New York Magazine, April 4.
Leach, Amy Complexion Gettysburg Review, Autumn.
Leavitt, Michele No Trespassing Journal, Spring/ Summer.
Lehman, David Among My Souvenirs Boulevard, Spring.
Lemon, Alex Heartdusting Southern Review, Winter.
Lerer, Seth First Love Yale Review, October.
Leslie, Naton A Compendium of Fact North Dakota Quarterly, vol. 75, nos. 3 & 4.
Levy, E. J . Artichoke Hearts Kenyon Review, Summer.
Lewis, Cynthia Crazy in Love Massachusetts Review, vol. 51, no. 1.
Lewis-Beck, Michael My Cherry Orchard in Iowa Wapsipinicon Almanac, no. 17.
Livatino, Mel A Spy in the House of Experience Under the Sun, Summer.
Long, Pricilla Balancing Act Under the Sun, Summer.
Lopate, Phillip How Do You End an Essay? Salmagundi, Fall/Winter.
Lopez, Barry An Intimate Geography Portland, Summer.
M-N
MacDonald, James The Virtue of Living a Lie Boulevard, Fall.
MacInnis, Margaret Portrait of a Man in a Fur Hat Tampa Review, no. 40.
Madden, Patrick Writer Michael Martone’s Leftover Water Normal School, Fall.
Manesiotis, Joy What I Learned in Art School Massachusetts Review, vol. 51, no. 1.
Martin, Lee All Those Fathers That Night Gulf Coast, Summer/Fall.
Masters, Hilary Looking Back: A Provincetown Memoir Provincetown Arts, no. 25.
McLeod, Charles Settlers of Unassigned Lands South Dakota Review, Spring.
McNutt, Steve SUV vs. Bike, SUV Wins Iowa Review, vol. 40, no. 1.
McPhee, John The Patch New Yorker, February 8.
Merkin, Daphne My Life in Therapy New York Times Magazine, August 8.
Meyer, A. B. Keep This Fortune Epiphany, Spring/Summer.
Meyers, Jeffrey The Wind in the Willows: A New Source for Animal Farm Salmagundi
Miles, Kathryn Killing Laughter Flyway, vol. 13, no. 1.
Miller, Ben The Reinvention of Ice Ecotone, Spring.
Miller, Jane Dying Raritan, Fall.
Milne, Lorna Bear Dreaming Frontiers, vol. 31, no. 2.
Mirer, Anna The Wills of Twenty Strangers Bellevue Literary Review, Spring.
Monson, Ander Keyboarding Zone, Spring.
Montgomery, Sarah Fawn Ekphrasis: What My Grandfather Saw Fugue, Summer/Fall.
Moore, Alexios Field Studies Roxbury, 1983 Post Road, no. 18.
Moore, Dinty W. Mr. Plimpton's Revenge: A Google Maps Essay The Normal School
Morano, Michele Evenings at the Collegeview Diner Waterstone, no. 13.
Morell, Virginia The Immortal Ones: Plants and Animals That Live Forever Creative Nonfiction, no. 38, Spring.
Mori, Kyoko The Pleasure of Letting Go Ploughshares, Fall.
Muir, Kerry The Bridge Willow Springs, no. 66.
Murrell, Duncan The Meat Horses of Serbia Normal School, Fall.
Nadelson, Scott Go Ahead and Look Oregon Humanities, Spring.
Nelson, Antonya Hello, This Is Bob Open City, no. 29.
Nelson, Arnold G. How to Write a Good Sentence: A Manual for Writers Who Know How to Write Correct Sentences Alaska Quarterly Review, Spring/ Summer.
Newberry, Beth The Center of the Compass Louisville Review, Spring.
Nezhukumatathil, Aimee Birth Geographic Waterstone, no. 13.
Nix, Megan Swim Memory Fourth Genre, Spring.
Noonan, T. A. The Trouble with Correspondence Ninth Letter, Spring/Summer.
Novakovich, Josip Cat Named Sobaka Prairie Schooner, Spring.
O-P
Oates, Joyce Carol Going Home Again Smithsonian, March.
Odishoo, Sarah Time in a Bottle North Dakota Quarterly, vol. 75, nos. 3 & 4.
Ofri, Danielle Unstrung Missouri Review, Winter.
Olsen, W. Scott The World Record Mid- American Review, vol. 30, nos. 1 & 2.
Orner, Peter Horace and Josephine Ninth Letter, Fall/Winter.
Osborne, Lawrence Hungry Ghosts Bidoun, Spring.
O’Brien, Cynthia-Marie A Figment of Your Imagination Bellevue Literary Review, Fall.
O’Connor, John S. Once More to the Ocean Schools, Spring.
Panning, Anne The Mailbox Ascent, January 7.
Parker, Michael I’m with Stupid Oxford American, no. 70.
Partridge, Elise Legends of Good Women Southwest Review, vol. 95, no. 4.
Peck, Dale Dutcher’s Notch Threepenny Review, Summer.
Peckham, Joel Please Take What You Want Jelly Bucket, no. 2.
Peters, David Torrey Northern Aire Chinchilla Ranch, Indiana Review, Summer.
Pippin, Robert No Good Reason: Film Noir as Philosophy Point, no. 2, Winter.
Pleva, Deborah Tomecek Czech Out His Name Brain, Child, Spring.
Pollack. Eileen Thin Air Michigan Quarterly Review, Winter.
Prose, Francine The King and Queen of the Roses Southern Review, Summer.
Proulx, Annie A Yard of Cloth Ecotone, no. 10.
Q-R
Quammen, David Being Jane Goodall National Geographic, October.
Rafferty, Colin Surfacing Fourth Genre, Fall.
Rauch, Jonathan Letting Go of My Father Atlantic, April.
Robinson, Penelope Schwartz Burrowing Hotel Amerika, Fall.
Robinson, Roxana Paralyzed Harper’s, September.
Romtvedt, David Notebook on a Post Cimarron Review, Summer.
Root, Robert Time and Tide Ascent, August 1.
Rosenfeld, Natania Life and Death Southwest Review, vol. 95, no. 4.
Rosin, Hanna The End of Men Atlantic, July/ August.
Rothenberg, Sarah Reverse Immortality: The Memory of Music TriQuarterly, no. 137.
Ruefle, Mary Among the Clouds Make, Spring/ Summer.
Russell, Laura-Rose Scented Gettysburg Review, Spring.
Ruttenberg, Jay Billy Madison: A Love Letter Lowbrow Reader, Fall/Winter.
S-T
Sandor, Marjorie Threshold Fugue, Winter/Spring.
Saner, Reg My Fall into Knowledge Georgia Review, Spring.
Schaitkin, Alexis Living Relics Ecotone, Spring.
Schvey, Henry I . The Road to Tennessee River Styx, no, 81- 82.
Seabrook, John The Last Babylift New Yorker, May 10.
Seeley, Tracy Cartographies of Change Prairie Schooner, Summer.
Selgin, Peter Alone: On Two Types of Solitude Gulf Coast, Summer/Fall.
Shinner, Peggy Leopold and Shinner Colorado Review, Fall/Winter.
Shulevitz, Judith Downtime New Republic, October 14.
Singer, Margot A Natural History of Small- Town Ohio Ninth Letter, Fall/Winter.
Skloot, Floyd The Bottom Shelf Novels I Keep Failing to Read Sewanee Review, Summer.
Sloan, Aisha Fawlanionese Michigan Quarterly Review, Summer.
Smith, J . D. Mere Aesthetics Boulevard, Spring.
Solnit, Rebecca The Story of the Storm Nation, September 13.
Solomon, Andrew To an Aesthete Dying Young Yale Alumni Magazine, July/August.
Solomon, Benjamin A God Place Southeast Review, vol. 28, no. 2.
Spiegelman, Willard On the Road Kenyon Review Online, Summer.
Stanley, Brian Jay Meditation During a Rainstorm Connecticut Review, vol. 32, no. 2.
Steinberg, Michael Chin Music, Gihon River Review, Fall.
Sterling, Kirk The Return of the Hostess Pajama Epiphany, Fall/Winter.
Stewart, Garrett Bookwork as Demediation Critical Inquiry, Spring.
Stine, Peter Detroit Marathon Sport Literate, vol. 7, no. 1.
Stone, Laurie Toby Dead Open City, no. 28.
Stothart, Robert American Kestrel Black Warrior Review, Spring/Summer.
Strickland, Lee Girl, Ruined Sun, November.
Sukrungruang, Ira Noisy Neighbor Crab Orchard Review, Winter/Spring.
Tallmadge, John A Visit to the Creation Museum Isotope, vol. 7, no. 2.
Thomas, Abigail Where the Woods Begin Lumina, no. 9.
Thomas, Alison B. A Telescope at the Sky Fourth Genre, Spring.
Thrasher, Steven White America Has Lost Its Mind villagevoice.com, September 29–October 5.
Tisdale, Sallie On Spectrum Harper’s, April.
Tobin, Lad There’s No Such Thing as Free Association Sun, September.
Tsing, Anna Arts of Inclusion, or How to Love a Mushroom MÁnoa, Winter.
U-V
Underdahl, Robin The Lovely Maiden Jumps into the Waters Upstreet, no. 6.
Van Meter, Ryan The Goldfish History Fourth Genre, Spring.
Vollmann, William T. A Good Death Harper’s, November.
W-X
Wade, Julie Marie Eucharist Salamander, Winter.
Wall, Christopher Look Down, Don’t Look Down Missouri Review, Fall.
Wallace, Garry The Sportsmans’ Barber Shop Owen Wister Review, 2010.
Weitl, Philip Restless Jelly Bucket, no. 2.
Welker, Holly Leap Year Alaska Quarterly Review, Fall/Winter.
Wenderoth, Joe Drug-Testing for Writers Western Humanities Review, Winter.
Will, Frederic Time and Language: The Trials of a Philosophical Tourist Massachusetts Review, vol. 51, no. 1.
Williams, Lynna Humor Is Not a Mood Fourth Genre, Spring.
Winograd, Kathryn Bathing Fourth Genre, Spring.
Wolfson, Laura Esther The Bagel in the Snowflake North Atlantic Review, no. 21.
Wood, Ira You Are What You Owe Fifth Wednesday
Wood, James Serious Noticing Michigan Quarterly Review, Fall.
Wrenn, Christopher Breaking Line North Carolina Literary Review, no. 19.
Wright, Lili Pilgrim Southern Indiana Review
Wrightson, Erica Zora Artichoke Slake, Summer.
Y-Z
Yagoda, Ben Trial and Eros American Scholar, Autumn.
Zacharias, Lee I Cannot Write About You, I Can Only Write to You Southern Review, Autumn.
Zambreno, Kate Slapping Clark Gable Make, Spring/ Summer.
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