Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Announces Stellar Roster of Guest Editors for The Best American Series® 2011


NEW YORK — February 14, 2011 — Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) today announced an outstanding list of guest editors for this year’s edition of the acclaimed Best American Series®.

“2010 was another great year for the series with The Best American Short Stories® and The Best American Comics™ on the New York Times Best Sellers list,” Bruce Nichols, Senior Vice President and Publisher of HMH’s Trade & Reference Group, said. “2011 has come together to be just as exciting.”

The Best American Short Stories®: Geraldine Brooks
Geraldine Brooks was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in fiction in 2006 for her novel March.Her first novel, Year of Wonders, is an international bestseller, and her novel People of the Books was a New York Times bestseller, translated into twenty languages.

The Best American Essays®: Edwidge Danticat
Edwidge Danticat is the author of National Book Award finalist Krik? Krak! and American Book Award winner The Farming of Bones, among other acclaimed books of essays and memoir.

The Best American Comics™: Alison Bechdel
Alison Bechdel’s comic strip Dykes to Watch out For was an international sensation. She is also the author of the best-selling memoir Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, which was named a Best Book of the Year by Time, Entertainment Weekly, the New York Times and People, among others. Her second graphic memoir, Are You My Mother?, will be out in 2012.

The Best American Nonrequired Reading™: Dave Eggers, with an introduction by Guillermo del Toro
Dave Eggers is the editor of McSweeney’s and a cofounder of 826 National, a network of nonprofit writing and tutoring centers for youth. He is the author of six books, including What Is the What, Zeitoun and Wild Things. Guillermo del Toro is the Mexican filmmaker behind the Oscar-nominated 2006 fantasy film Pan’s Labyrinth and the Hellboy franchise.

The Best American Travel Writing™: Sloane Crosley
Sloane Crosley is the author I Was Told There’d Be Cake, which was a finalist for the Thurber Prize for American Humor. Her second collection, How Did You Get This Number, finds her riffing on European vacation disasters and doing bridesmaid duty in Alaska.

The Best American Science and Nature Writing™: Mary Roach
Mary Roach is the best-selling author of Stiff, Spook, Bonk, and most recently, Packing for Mars. Her writing has appeared in Salon, Wired, Outside, GQ, Discover, Vogue and the New York Times Magazine.

The Best American Sports Writing™: Jane Leavy
Jane Leavy is an award-winning former sportswriter and feature writer for the Washington Post. She is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Sandy Koufax and The Last Boy.

The Best American Mystery Stories™: Harlan Coben
Harlan Coben’s last three consecutive novels Caught, Long Lost and Hold Tight all debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and lists around the world. He is a winner of the Edgar Award, the Shamus Award and the Anthony Award.


About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
 Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is a global education and learning company that is leading the way with innovative solutions and approaches to the challenges facing education today. The world’s largest provider of educational products and solutions for pre-K–12 learning, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt develops and delivers interactive, results-driven learning solutions that advance teacher effectiveness and student achievement. Through curricula excellence and technology innovation, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt collaborates with school districts, administrators, teachers, parents and students. Today, HMH education products and services are used by 57 million students throughout all 50 U.S. states and 120 countries. With origins dating back to 1832, the Company also publishes an extensive line of reference works and award-winning literature for adults and young readers. For more information, visit www.hmhpub.com.