The Best American Essays 2016 - Curated by Jonathan Franzen
The 2016 edition of The Best American Essays presents a collection of bold, risk-taking essays selected by guest editor Jonathan Franzen. This literary anthology showcases contemporary nonfiction that challenges conventions and embraces personal subjectivity.
Guest Editor's Vision
Jonathan Franzen, author of five novels including Purity and five works of nonfiction such as Farther Away and The Kraus Project, defines the true essay as "something hazarded, not definitive, not authoritative; something ventured on the basis of the author's personal experience and subjectivity." His primary selection criterion for this volume was risk—essays that champion unpopular opinions, potentially jeopardize professional careers, or irrevocably challenge family relationships. As Franzen notes, "the writer has to be like the firefighter, whose job, while everyone else is fleeing the flames, is to run straight into them."
Featured Contributors
This essay collection includes work from distinguished contemporary writers:
- Alexander Chee
- Paul Crenshaw
- Jaquira Díaz
- Laura Kipnis
- Amitava Kumar
- Sebastian Junger
- Joyce Carol Oates
- Oliver Sacks
- Thomas Chatterton Williams
The Best American Essays Series
Robert Atwan has served as series editor of The Best American Essays since its inception in 1986. His editorial expertise spans American advertising, early photography, ancient divination, and Shakespeare. His criticism, essays, humor, poetry, and fiction have appeared in numerous periodicals nationwide, making him an authoritative curator of this annual anthology.
About Jonathan Franzen
Jonathan Franzen is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the German Akademie der Künste, and the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. His literary credentials and editorial vision bring exceptional depth to this collection of contemporary American essays.
Publication Details
Published by Mariner Books in October 2016, this paperback edition offers readers access to the year's most compelling essay writing. The collection serves as both a reading list for literature enthusiasts and a resource for those studying writing craft and creative nonfiction.
