The Best American Magazine Writing

I'm a big fan of the "Best American" series of books. Nowhere can the reader find such great collections of stories and articles in the fields of Sports, Travel, Crime, Mysteries, Short Stories, and so on. "Best American Magazine Writing 2003" was my first experience with this particular catagory, and I immediately noted that it contains entries from both the 2003 Sports and Crime volumes. Fantastic prose and exemplary storytelling are key features to the Best American books, and this one is no exception. The highlights from this collection include a discussion of Icebergs and Global Warming called "Terminal Ice," a retelling of football coach George O'Leary's downfall called "Lying in Wait," a chilling account of Holocaust victims used to create an anatmy guide in "The Most Dangerous Beauty," and reportage on the Hezbollah terrorist movement called "In the Party of God."The only drawback to this collection is that the articles and stories vary so widely in subject matter that some will likely be of much more interest to any individual reader than others. Nevertheless, it's a keeper.