This volume is always one of the most enlightening books I read every year; there's usually nothing that can top the eye-opening reporting and splendid writing accumulated here.

My only gripe is the reason this is 4 stars instead of 5 stars - less columns/reviews, more feature writing, reporting pieces! I think it's been more geared toward longer pieces in the past, but this year there were a good amount of the shorter pieces - and while still worthy, I wish if they had won for "three columns over the year" that all three were featured instead of just one. And columns also tend to be narrowly about the events/time at present - which is past now. Just a lot less relevant to my interests than the longer, expertly-reported pieces...my absolute favorites were:

"The Deadly Choices at Memorial" by Sheri Fink (NY Times Magazine - this article won Pulitzer for reporting)
"Still Life" by Skip Hollandsworth (Texas Monthly Magazine)
"The Last Abortion Doctor" by John H. Richardson (Esquire)
"The Cost Conundrum" by Atul Gawande (New Yorker)
"Vanish" by Evan Ratliff (Wired)

Some of the best writing in all the years I've been reading this volume.