June’s first Notable Narrative recounts the story of Blue Platoon, Killer Troop, whose soldiers returned to the U.S. in 2009 after finishing one of the last 15-month combat tours in Iraq. The story behind this multimedia project is simple and … Read more
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 is not something she can do. This excellent piece … Read more
This elegiac piece is at once memoir and a tribute to both DeSilva’s own father and his generation. It poses a mystery, draws readers in with it and resolves it, with grace and elegance. We admired the structural clarity of … Read more
Bruce DeSilva wrote us this about the piece: “Rukmini Callimachi is an AP bureau writer with less than 5 years in the business. She set out to do a situationer on the 30 Katrina victims still unidentified and unburied. The … Read more
This is a effective example of how narrative can flesh out, give dignity to, people who feel they are, as a central character says in this story, “just a number in someone’s book.” The story also uses narrative to make … Read more
We include this piece in part because of its strong authorial presence. Sedensky guides readers through his portrait of Fred Phelps with a firm hand. Here’s an example: “They’re not doing this to save you. They’re doing it to save … Read more
This journal about traveling with bird-destruction teams in Turkey is honest, informative and full of voice. This is an intimate sharing of a difficult journey. The author uses first person not to grandstand, but to communicate knowingly, American to American, … Read more
This story provides facts, reveals wrongs, while weaving a good tale and involving the reader in the lives of its characters. In the words of the piece’s editor, Bruce DeSilva: “In telling the story, we disdained the usual term-paper-indictment approach … Read more
This piece is plot-driven, yet builds character, as it illuminates conflicts created by human encroachment into fire-prone areas. The piece offers both adventure and context. With skillful asides, Foster alludes well to some of the “backstories” of the American West: … Read more
This is a finely reconstructed account of a charismatic leader who moved into a town and changed nearly everything about it. We like Lewan’s opening paragraphs: His language suggests legend or origin myth—the tribal elder saying, “Have a seat, young … Read more
