In case you aren't aware of the Best American Series, it's basically an annual anthology of short-form writing, both fiction and non-fiction, published in the previous year. I personally follow the essay, science writing, and science and nature writing ones (yes, the latter two are separate volumes), but I have purchased volumes of food and of travel writing to try someday. The way it works is there is a series editor, who offers a selection of pieces (I believe 150, but don't quote me on that), and the year's guest editor chooses from those.
Since all the pieces have been previously published elsewhere, this list might be particularly helpful as you can probably track them down and read them even if you don't get the whole book (though you should, it's really good).
Enjoy!
This year's editor was Sy Montgomery, author of the beloved nature memoir The Soul of an Octopus. I found her a very practical and hard-hitting judge for the science section: most of it was about real-life consequences of a variety of research. Her nature writing picks were very in-depth and technical, though there were some whimsy ones thrown in there. Overall, the anthology was grim and enraging—but those are the times we're living, sadly. This is all to say that I found it fascinating and would totally urge everyone to give it a go.
Now, as promised, my top picks (the bestest science and nature writing, if you will)
- This Sand is your Sand (Chris Colin, Outside)
This reads like a light fun neighbor war about private beaches, but it's at heart an exploration of entitlement and who can and should own our land. For something so place-specific, it was very relevant to my country and it might be for wherever you live too, which is both depressing and a bonus for readers.
- The Brain, Reimagined (Douglas Fox, Scientific American)
Immediately after I finally finished my Fundamentals of Neuroscience course I read this piece, all about a physicist whose research threatens to completely redefine our understanding of how neurons transmit information through our bodies. It felt amazing to know everything I had spent a solid year learning might become outdated soon (though it's unlikely), but hey, the article is great!
- What If the Placebo Effect is Not a Trick? (Gary Greenberg, The New York Times Magazine)
It has been known for a long time that placebo can have tremendous effect in healing and recovery. This can certainly be great for a particular patient, but it also raises several questions, explored in this essay, about the ethics and possibilities of placeboes as legitimate medical treatment.
- Deleting a Species (Rowan Jacobsen, Pacific Standard)
Terrifying and hard-hitting, this article about the realities and ethics of genetic editing for the sake of more comfortable human existence raises essential questions about the future of science and why we should be asking them now.
- The Insect Apocalypse is Here (Brooke Jarvis, The New York Times Magazine)
This is a bit sacrilegious in nature writing circles, but I dislike all insects (and anything that might technically not be an insect but the layperson would still describe as such), which is why I wasn't thrilled to have to read this piece. Lucky me, this isn't just about these essential creatures, but much more about how little scientists actually know about them... and the powers of amateur science!
- How to Not Die in America (Molly Osberg, Splinter)
Certainly the most structurally creative essay on this list, Osberg looks at how the "you're lucky you made it" sentiment in fact reflects a type of medical fortune inextricably linked to social class.
- Why Paper Jams Persist (Joshua Rothmans, The New Yorker)
This is the type of gems I'm always on the lookout for: well-done pieces about oddly specific things that make me feel both entertained and a little smarter.
- The Professor of Horrible Deeds (Jordan Michael Smith, The Chronicle of Higher Education)
Wow. This was not only super engaging, but also extremely relevant in a time of cancel culture and people attempting to legitimize pedophilia through social media and postmodern language manipulation. A professor has devoted his life's work to a controversial sexual disorder clinic; now he doesn't know if there will be someone to take over when he retires. Implications about his research are also questions about who deserves treatment and on what terms.
- The Hidden Toll: Why Are Black Mothers and Babies in the United States Dying at More Than Double the Rate of White Mothers and Babies? The Answer Has Everything to Do with the Lived Experience of Being a Black Woman in America (Linda Villarosa, The New York Times Magazine)
Be warned, the faux-clickbait title is a setup. You're not about to read a fluffed-up filler piece. You're about to feel enraged and heartbroken. You will scream or cry, possibly both. Timely and necessary and deeply personal, this is all of that and more. Go read it.
- When the Next Plague Hits (Ed Yong, The Atlantic)
When I read the title of this one, I chuckled darkly because... well. This is all about how ill-prepared countries were to cope with the last Ebola pandemic, and how this experience didn't seem to have taught governments much at all. Saying it hit close to home is an understatement. The silver lining? Yong is a great writer, and he was right.
- Paper Trails: Living and Dying with Fragmented Medical Records (Ilana Yurkiewicz, Unmark)
Just chilling. Like the paper jams piece, this deals with something prosaic one might think would be resolved in the times of DNA modification and ever increasing daily-life AI: the lack of a unified medical record to follow you no matter the hospital or clinic you attend. Only in this case, what's at stake might be your life. Good luck.
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