âTo read their stories felt to me the way I suspect other people feel hearing jazz for the first time,â recalls Curtis Sittenfeld of her initial encounter with the Best American Short Stories series. âThey were windows into emotions I had and hadnât had, into other settings and circumstances and observations and relationships.â Decades later, Sittenfeld was met by the same feeling selecting the stories for this yearâs edition. The result is a striking and nuanced collection, bringing to life awkward college students, disgraced public figures, raunchy grandparents, and mystical godmothers. To read these stories is to experience the transporting joys of discovery and affirmation, and to realize that story writing in America continues to flourish.
THE BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES 2020 INCLUDES T. C. BOYLE âą EMMA CLINE âą MARY GAITSKILL
ANDREA LEE âą ELIZABETH McCRACKEN âą ALEJANDRO PUYANA WILLIAM PEI SHIH âą KEVIN WILSON and others