The Best American Magazine Writing

The Best American Magazine Writing 2010 proves that print journalism is as vital as ever, offering information, amusement, connection, and perspective to those who love to lose themselves in a good read. This year’s selections, chosen from National Magazine Awards finalists and winners, include David Grann’s article from the New Yorker on the execution of a possibly innocent man; Sheri Fink’s report from the New York Times Magazine on the alleged euthanization of patients during Hurricane Katrina; and Fareed Zakaria’s compelling take from Newsweek on Iran’s weakening regime. The Best American Magazine Writing 2010 also includes absorbing profiles, arresting interviews, personal essays, and entrancing fiction. Esquire’s Mike Sager recounts a promising quarterback’s shocking descent into drugs; Vanity Fair’s Bryan Burrough shares the confessions of the year’s other major Ponzi schemer, and, from McSweeney’s Quarterly, Wells Tower weaves a transporting tale of elemental desire. GQ’s Tom Carson offers his critique of America’s current vampire craze; Mitch Albom rediscovers Detroit’s indomitable spirit in Sports Illustrated; and Garrison Keillor sings an ode to the homegrown joys of state fairs in National Geographic. Additional contributors include Atul Gawande, Megan McArdle, and many others commenting on a range of issues, from health care and the national debt to war movies and the controversy over circumcision. Altogether the writing collected here proves the rich pleasures waiting in the best magazines.