New Love: Best American Non-required Reading 2009

If you haven't picked a copy up yet, do it now. Dave Eggers (and his coalition of student helpers) has put together a smashingly quirky collection of essays, comics, short fiction, nonfiction, screenplays, etc. The letters to President Obama from school children are both hilarious and surprisingly philosophical, like the boy who writes:

Dear President Obama,

I want to tell you hi. Do you work with Santa Claus? Can I meet you in your house? Can I say bye to you after I meet you? And then can I meet you again? And then again after that?

Sergio Magana, age 5

San Francisco

I want to turn that into a song.

My next favorite so far is "Everything I Know About My Family on My Mother's Side" by Nathan Englander--beautifully written and told in short numbered snippets--which, admittedly, confused me at first, but wowed me by the end. On top of all this, the intro is written (and illustrated) by Marjane Satrapi. Oh, it all gives me tingles.