In January, I decided to read 366 feature stories this year — averaging out to one per day. It’s been a nice experience, though far too many of the stories have been entirely depressing, which comes with the territory in this depressing era we’re all trying to survive. It’s also been an interesting calendar of sorts. Looking back over the past six months, it’s almost amazing to see how much the tone, subject matter, urgency of stories has shifted. There’s probably something more to be said about all that, but I don’t have the energy at the moment, so let’s just get to the 10 best stories I’ve read so far this year…
10.) How This Con Man’s Wild Testimony Sent Dozens to Jail, and 4 to Death Row by Pamela Colloff in New York Times Magazine
9.) Hitchhiker, hero, celebrity, killer: The strange journey of the man called Kai by Jana Pruden in The Globe and Mail
8.) The Sting by Michael Lista in Toronto Life
7.) The Weirdly Enduring Appeal of Weird Al Yankovic by Sam Anderson in The New York Times
6.) A stubborn stain, a selfless act, a wrenching discovery: cleaning up after Chris Beaty’s death in Indianapolis by Mary Claire Molloy in The Indianapolis Star
5.) The Accusations Were Lies. But Could We Prove It?by Sarah Viren in The New York Times
4.) Miranda’s Rebellion by Stephanie McCrummen in The Washington Post
3.) Boss of the Beach by David Gauvey Herbert in New York Magazine
2.) What Happened to Val Kilmer? He’s Just Starting to Figure It Out. by Taffy Brodesser-Akner in The New York Times
1.) The pandemic hit and this car became home for a family of four. by Greg Jaffe in The Washington Post
by David M. Hale 