Rather than reconstruct a tale of crime from the victim’s perspective or after the suspect is found guilty—approaches we see more often—O’Hagan tells the story of a cop. The story…

Schmickle and the project’s editor, Laurie Hertzel, wrote us the following comments on this project:Sharon Schmickle: Two years ago, I began hearing that several thousand Liberians had arrived recently in…

Bearak’s use of first person is especially unusual in this piece about Adam Greenberg, a baseball player who, on his first day in the Majors, gets beaned in the head…

This account of the 2006 California heat wave that killed 138 people cruises on the drama of the event, focusing on one man who died soon after driving his tractor…

Our “mawkishness meter” went pretty high on this story, but we’re curmudgeons. It’s an effective, intimate story of devotion and faith. The two-part series was published on Christmas eve and…

"The archbishop’s wedding made headlines around the world," Manseau e-mailed us, "but it struck me that no one had really attempted to tell his story in a personal, engaging way.…

As part of his 12-step program, William Beebe apologizes to Liz Seccuro for the harm he caused her. He and others expect Seccuro to forgive and move on. Not surprisingly,…

This series was written and reported by Kevin Van Valkenburg and Lem Satterfield. It follows a cast of characters through a football season, focusing on one central game. It explores…

This is an effective and persuasive coming-of-age tale. It’s persuasive in part because it’s not entirely a story of triumph. Shawn McDonald struggles and rails against losses along with his…

This narrative follows the efforts of one woman to help her son, a 10-year-old with progeria, a disease that causes rapid aging and early death. The mother is also a…