October 15, 2020
The deadline for submissions to The Best American Essays in any given year is February first, so all of this year's material was written well before either the COVID-19 pandemic or recent Black Lives Matter protests. Despite this, the topics of many of these 24 essays seem strangely prescient: memories of a different epidemic, AIDS; the story of an elderly parent dying while away from family members; photos emphasizing racial profiling, white imperialism, bigotry, ignorance, and the isolation of solitary strangers. Bits of humor and kindness soften the harsh realities described in some accounts, and there are stories of acceptance, growth, and increased wisdom. Then there are the standalones, essays with topics ranging from Susan Sontag to Paleolithic cave figures to Leopold and Loeb to the Holocaust, which fold in snapshots of poetry, art criticism, philosophy, Shakespeare, and horror movies. As with previous series entries, this book's diverse array of subjects and authors represented, combined with its consistently strong writing and timely references to contemporary issues, makes for a compelling collection that should appeal widely.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)