The Best American Essays

This is a solid and diverse collection of true-crime writing, if devoid of the memorable entries that marked the 2004 edition. The 16 pieces—some by familiar names such as noir master Ellroy, Freakonomics coauthor Stephen J. Dubner and terrorism expert Lawrence Wright—span a wider range of criminal activities, however, from an anatomy of bar fights (perhaps the slightest of the pieces) to the evolving nature of al-Qaeda as evidenced by the March 11, 2004, Madrid train bombings. Three essays stand out in particular for conveying noteworthy aspects of the criminal mind in a short format.