We found this story difficult to read, for good reason; we squirmed with sympathy for Elias Fishburne, a man who is swept into the criminal justice system in a case of mistaken identity. Jones masterfully builds tension and sorrow for … Read more
DeGregory spent four months reporting this story about a 14-year-old girl, Lillie, her newborn son, Thomas, and the woman who takes her in, Amy. DeGregory’s structure is lucid, the scenes intimate. She shows once again her knack for highlighting small, … Read more
This piece starts with a news-feature sort of lead, a focusing-in on one boy that is well-wrought and moving. Then comes a long, sweeping history, then a section of first-person reporting. We would have liked a reworking of structure—more of … Read more
This fascinating piece is part historical narrative, part contemporary profile. From a craft point of view, we were interested in the challenge of portraying Margarete Barthel, the former SS guard, in ways that offer an authoritative "take" yet leave room … Read more
We admired the balance in this piece of detachment and emotion, of distance and closeness. We appreciated the close attention to telling detail, action, gesture and also the willingness to frame the piece with more sweeping observations. This is not … Read more
This is a story about the power of story and stories: the power of telling them, of withholding them; the weight they bear in families; the power they have to heal, bring resolution. In this story French writes about his … Read more
What stands out among all the lovely elements in this series is Tizon’s use of the first and second persons. Come join me on a journey, he says. And if you’ve just joined me, let me fill you in. In … Read more
As in all of Siegel’s stories on this site, all of which cover in some sense an “endangered child,” he portrays emotional content—in this case a young boy’s death, his parents’ senseless loss—while making a contribution to the way we … Read more
Siegel builds this piece on effective, masterful movement from story-telling through explanatory digressions and back to story. The digressions advance not just our understanding of how this girl could come to die in the way she did, but also the … Read more
What consistently sets Siegel’s writing apart from many other newspaper narratives is his ability and willingness to construct an authoritative, muscular “argument.” In this case, he shows how a middle-class community in the 1960s failed to prevent a child’s murder, … Read more
