826 STUDENTS Edit Annual anthology

Since 2002, every year a committee of high school students have been on the prowl for surprising pieces of writing to unite into an annual anthology. Released October 2nd, the most recent iteration, The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2018 was edited by 15 Bay Area students from the 826 Valencia writing labs and author Sheila Heti. The publication includes new fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, and category-defying gems, and it was celebrated at San Francisco’s Green Apple Books. According to Kirkus Reviews, “Literary culture is in good hands in this top-shelf collection.” We couldn’t agree more! You can’t predict what you’ll happen upon in this book.

For those who are curious, what follows are some words of advice from the committee itself, taken from the Editor’s note written by committee member Clara Sankey:

“Our committee would like to say a few final words to you, dear reader: Coco wants you to know that as strange as this collection is, no one was on drugs when we put it together. Xuan is super excited for you to dive right in, and Huckleberry says that if you don’t like one piece, move on and just keep reading! Charley suggests you keep an open mind, while Zoe recommends bringing tissues. Emilia’s advice is a little more prescriptive: take it slow, she says, read a maximum of two pieces per day, otherwise you won’t be able to appreciate them. As you read, she continues, pause and let the words sink in. Max concludes that we may have a strange collection, but reading always, always has a direct impact and positive outcomes.”