Best American Essays 2023

Calling all readers: what's your favorite essay in the 2023 volume?

Guest edited by Vivian Gornick, the 2023 volume of The Best American Essays is available now, featuring twenty-one essays that “reflect their authors’ unapologetic observations about the world around them.” This volume is the final one edited by essay series founder and editor, Robert Atwan. I’m delighted to announce that you can continue to read Bob’s wise commentary about the essay in the CLOSEreading section of this newsletter.

Meanwhile: What’s your favorite essay (or one sentence from an essay) in the volume and why? Reply to this post with a fifty-word response, or send us a fifty-word email to bestamericanessayseditor@gmail.com.

Authors featured in the 2023 volume: Ciara Alfaro, Jillian Barnet, Sylvie Baumgartel, Eric Borsuk, Chris Dennis, Xujun Eberlein, Sandra Hager Eliason, George Estreich, Merrill Joan Gerber, Debra Gwartney, Edward Hoagland, Laura Kipnis, Phillip Lopate, Celeste Marcus, Sam Meekings, Sigrid Nunez, Kathryn Schulz, Robert Anthony Siegel, Scott Spencer, Angelique Stevens, and David Treuer.