Harare Review of Books

432 pages.

First published in 2011.

Finished reading on 29 Jan 2021.

Genre: Anthology (fiction and non-fiction).

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

First foray into this series. Took me ages to read, as you may imagine. Chose this one as it has pretty good reviews–something I do when I jump into a new series.

[Edit/update: Strong warning for triggers (rape, suicide, etc) in some of the content. Guess there were no warnings about this kind of thing in 2011? I skimmed over it, but was still somewhat triggered.]

My favourite reads (skipped a few–Zombies?? 🙄 The one about hair???):

• Near the top is The Years of My Birth, by Louise Erdrich. Happily, you can also read it here.

• An Oral History Of Olivia Hamilton, by Olivia Hamilton, Robin Levi and Ayelet Waldman, an essay about a woman who was incarcerated. It’s pay-to-access here.

• Redeployment, by Phil Klay, which you can find for free here. An excellent read.

• The Children, by Julie Otsuka, about the American children of Japanese [migrants]. If you have a subscription to Granta, you can read it here.

• Beautiful Monsters by Eric Puchner is extremely unsettling, and well worth reading. (The ending isn’t even the worst part for me–saw that coming. It’s everything else.) Could not find an easy link.

• Peyton’s Place by John Jeremiah Sullivan was entertaining for the “Oh, that’s how they do it” insight into situating a TV character in a neighbourhood/home.

• Outlaw, by Jose Antonio Vargas, about being an undocumented immigrant in the US.

Rated: 7/10; really enjoyed the ones above. Strong warning for triggers (rape, suicide, etc) in some of the content.