In Praise of the Essay: Best American Essays 2026

Joining M in the panel discussion are contributors Jennifer Senior, Jia Tolentino and Christian Wiman. The event will be moderated by Kim Dana Kupperman, series editor of Best American Essays and will be hosted in the Strand Book Store's 3rd floor Rare Book Room at 828 Broadway on 12th Street.

Can’t make the event? Purchase a signed copy of The Best American Essays 2026 here.

ACCESSIBILITY:

Strand Book Store is an ADA compliant venue. The event space is accessible via elevator. Please ask a Strand employee upon arrival for directions to accessible seating if preferred.

ASL interpretation is available for this event by request only. Please reach out to our events team at events@strandbooks.com by October 7 to request.

For further information on accessibility in this space, or to make a request, please contact events@strandbooks.com.

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A collection of the year’s best essays, selected by critically acclaimed author of The Future Is History and How to Survive Totalitarianism and New York Times columnist, M. Gessen.

The Best American series, launched in 1915, is the premier annual showcase for the country’s finest short fiction and nonfiction, and it is the most respected—and most popular—of its kind.

M. Gessen, critically acclaimed essayist, New York Times columnist, and National Book Award winner, selects twenty essays out of thousands that represent the best examples of the form published the previous year.