The best American short stories 2012 : selected from U.S. and Canadian magazines

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 2012 edition is guest-edited by Tom Perrotta.The Best American Short Stories 2012 includes: Nathan Englander, Mary Gaitskill, Roxane Gay, Jennifer Haigh, Steven Millhauser, Alice Munro, Lawrence Osborne, Eric Puchner, George Saunders, Kate Walbert, and others. Tom Perrotta explains in his introduction that "all of [these stories] took me somewhere I didn't expect to go, and jolted me into that state of heightened awareness and emotional receptivity that's one of the great rewards of reading good fiction." The characters in these stories seek to discover something lacking in their life. Their stories take sharp and surprising turns and often reach dazzling conclusions. In Nathan Englander's "What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank," a playful discussion between two married couples veers into darker territory, exposing a secret that might have been better left unspoken. Taiye Selasi writes a portrait of a motherless girl on the cusp of pubescence in Africa, where womanhood may not be something to be celebrated. "What's Important is Feeling: by Adam Wilson gives us a window onto a movie set where the narrator aches for something cinematic to happen in his life. Roxane Gay's "North Country" introduces us to an unlikely couple who circle each other in a wary dance of approach and avoidance. An unexpected visitor with a brown glass bottle kicks off a wonderfully strange fable about how we look at ourselves in Steven Millhauser's "Miracle Polish." Full of clear, idiosyncratic voices and intriguing points of view, this multifaceted collection will reward readers. And, as Perrotta unapologetically states, "By any standard, this year's batch of stories is pretty damn good." 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 Short Stories 2012 includes The last speaker of the language / Carol Anshaw -- Pilgrim life / Taylor Antrim -- What we talk about when we talk about Anne Frank / Nathan Englander -- The other place / Mary Gaitskill -- North Country / Roxane Gay -- Paramour / Jennifer Haigh -- Navigators / Mike Meginnis -- Miracle polish / Steven Millhauser -- Axis / Alice Munro -- Volcano / Lawrence Osborne -- Diem Perdidi / Julie Otsuka -- Honeydew / Edith Pearlman -- Occupational hazard / Angela Pneuman -- Beautiful monsters / Eric Puchner -- Tenth of December / George Saunders -- The sex lives of African girls / Taiye Selasi -- Alive / Sharon Solwitz -- M&M world / Kate Walbert -- Anything helps / Jess Walter -- What's important is feeling / Adam Wilson

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 Short Stories 2012 includes

Nathan Englander, Mary Gaitskill, Roxane Gay, Jennifer Haigh,
Steven Millhauser, Alice Munro, Lawrence Osborne, Eric Puchner,
George Saunders, Kate Walbert, and others

 

Presents twenty of the best works of short fiction of the past year from a variety of acclaimed sources