A big bag of broken glass and diamonds, all holding light, some of it painful. Some stories were unforgettable for their cruelty, others for their incredible love. I’ll definitely be watching for more from my favorites.

In my collection of short story anthologies, I mark the stories I would read again. In this one there were four - by Nicole Krauss, David Means, Yxta Maya Murray, and Kevin Wilson.

The thing I like about these collections of short stories is that they are twice chosen, published once and then brought to the attention of whoever gathers the stories to be perused by the guest editor. There is never really a bad story in the collection. Always though, the content is dependent on the guest editor. I am unfamiliar with Jesmyn Ward and didn't know what to expect. Most of the stories were on the short side and except for George Saunders I didn't recognize any of the writers.This

short story anthologies will be like here's a phenomenal piece of literature, the likes of which you will never encounter again, and then 10 pages later serve you wattpad-level writing.of the 20 selected short stories, these were the few i felt genuinely deserved acknowledgment and would like to revisit in the future:• "the rest of us" by jenzo duque (from one story)• "good boy" by eloghosa osunde (from the paris review)• "haguillory" by stephanie soileau (from zoetrope: all-story)honorable ment...

3.85 is the official average of these 20 stories. My favorite was Kevin Wilson’s Biology. I do think the early stories are not as strong as the middle/later ones, which is completely random because these are in alphabetical order by author.

Another collection of stories so unoffensive and polite that they border on the bland. The "mfa" style of contemporary writing boiled down to its least adventurous form, albeit still engaging, well-written, and generally thoughtful. I can't blame the editorial team though, it's hard to shy away from a safe collection that will appease most people, and what can I say? I will probably purchase next year's as well to act as a taster of contemporary fiction authors. I preferred last year's selection...

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Best American Short Stories 2021. I have a love/hate relationship with anthologies.I know I won't like or connect with most of the stories but a few of them will stand out for me and make reading the collection worth it.The only story I really liked and connected with was "Biology." "Paradise" wasn't bad though I didn't like the characters like I did in "Biology."Good writing and a diverse collection of stories but didn't like the majority of them but

This is a wonderful collection. In her introduction, Editor Jesmyn Ward writes: “I hope that as you sink into world after world, become character after character in these stellar stories, you can forget yourself, and then, upon surfacing, know yourself and others anew.” These stories deliver on this promise, introducing readers to places and people and circumstances far and wide. My personal favorites were Miracle Girl and Switzerland. But excellence abounds and I enjoyed this collection immense...

I picked this one for its promise of offering the best short stories created during the pandemic period. I haven't tried Jesmyn Ward's work till now, but the introduction that she has provided for this collection made me sit up and take notice of it. I absolutely adored the introduction and found it one of the best parts of this collection. Coming to the stories, all of them have deep sadness etched all over them and I can see how they would have been born during the pandemic. They perfectly com...

As these things work, all of the stories selected by two-time National Book Award winner Jesmyn Ward for The Best American Short Stories 2021 compilation were actually published in English in American or Canadian periodicals between January 2020 and January 2021 by writers who call either the United States or Canada home. For that reason, the stories reflect much of the craziness that the world experienced during the chaotic year that 2020 so unexpectedly turned out to be for all of us. The stor...

Great:Playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Jamil Jan Kochai. Excellent. Sudden terror at recognizing his father in a video game, about the desparate wish to change the past, and the immutability of the present. Uses the second person well, which is hard to do.The Rest of Us, Jenzo Duque. Excellent .A story about the projects that doesn’t feel like exploitation and doesn’t have false optimism, with a lived-in language of spanglish. Biology, Kevin Wilson. Seizes on an oft-overlooked miles...

I look forward to these collections every year! It's always a great opportunity to discover new authors and I find that each guest editor has a different taste/flair in picking stories. Perhaps fitting for the year defined by a global pandemic and a contentious election that was defined as a battle for the soul of the nation, many of these stories are dark. I found it difficult to read some of the stories, since 2020 left me wanting to feel hopeful. Standouts in the collection are "The Miracle G...

All the stories here are terrific, and some are even better than that. They would have to be when you consider who the editor (Jesmyn Ward) left out: Richard Bausch, Lorrie Moore, Lydia Davis, T C Boyle to name a few from the 'Other Distinguished Stories' list. Perhaps because I read it in bed with a COVID fever I could not get one particular story out of my head - Christa Romanosky's 'In This Sort of World, the Asshole Wins' - I would wake up and treat myself to a paragraph from it and read the...

Another year, another volume from BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES! I had a little trouble adding this one to my digital collection. For a short amount of time, it simply wasn’t available as an ebook in the ibook store. Strange!Anywho, this is the first volume of stories largely written (or at least published) in the era of covid. But covid didn’t feature directly in any of them. I guess that is in keeping with the general feeling I get from the literary community that the pandemic is still too raw.

TL;DR: 1. George Saunders's "Love Letter" is the best piece.2. Admittedly, I skipped nine of the 20 stories here; either the first paragraph completely turned me off, or the first page didn't grab me, and a quick skim and glance at the last page didn't convince me to give those nine a shot. Why I Read ThisI always think I'll like most of the pieces in The Best American Short Stories collections. It's usually a toss-up.Five-Star Stories"Clementine, Carmelita, Dog"Solid plot and interesting perspe...

Three and a half stars. I thought these were the best stories overall:Our Children; Vanessa CutiPlaying Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain; Jamil Jan KochaiClementine, Carmelita, Dog; David MeansParadise, Yxta Maya MurrayThe Last Days of Rodney; Tracey Rose PeytonIn This Sort of World, the Asshole Wins; Christa RomanoskyLove Letter, George SaundersBiology, Kevin WilsonThese stories represent what I responded to in the collection, mostly realist, observational, formal structure, family/relation...

3.78 "varied, inclusive, dark" stars !!Thanks so much to Netgalley, Houghton Miffin Harcourt, the editors and all the authors for an advanced e-copy. I am providing an honest review. This will be released October 2021.This is my first time reading this collection of annual stories that are chosen by an accomplished author. This year it was Ms. Jesmyn Ward and she wrote a very thoughtful and beautiful introduction.For me these stories were about chaos, search for safety and love and dealing with

General Thoughts: This is an eclectic (and strong) mix of stories. From stories about family grief and imperialism through the lens of a video game, to stories about individuals who struggle to define their worth outside of how they can be of use to others, all roads lead to the interior in this collection (which feels emblematic of the world at large and lockdown tbh) My personal Top Five from the anthology (in no particular order): -Jamal Jan Kochai’s “Playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Pha

This is such a good collection of short stories, Jesmyn Ward knocked it out of the park here. The stories that really stood out to me as being excellent are "You Are My Dear Friend," "Biology," "The Rest of Us," and "Paradise." "Playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain" also was really thoughtful an interesting. I'm excited to read more of these collections!

Thank you to NetGalley and Mariner Books for the Advanced Reader's Copy!Now available.Whew, Jesmyn Ward has assembled a fantastic lineup of contemporary authors for this anthology. From new & emerging authors like C Pam Zhang to eminent literary giants like George Saunders, the collection explores the mythical, mystical and realistic. There are fairy tales, hood tales, Gothic tales and even an odd email or two. I absolutely could not stop reading it! Highly recommend this collection to anyone in...