A Textbook That Doesn't Entirely Suck

I know, right? Let's back up. Some of my appointments in the Writing Center are recurring tutorials—students who have registered for a one-credit course to accompany their freshman comp class. Sometimes we review their essays, sometimes we brainstorm, but occasionally, I get to read with them. 

There's one student who often ends up wanting help reading, and they [choosing the anonymizing pronoun here, for privacy's sake] get assigned the coolest essays. The craziest part? They're all in a textbook. 

The Writer's Presence. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, given Robert Atwan of The Best American Essays fame is a co-editor. There are classics of your college textbook variety: "The Declaration of Independence," "Letter From Birmingham Jail," "A Modest Proposal," which don't age, if you ask me. But there are also gems: essays like Lars Eighner's "On Dumpster Diving" and Laura Kipnis's "Against Love"; journalism like Charles Bowden's "Our Wall." Just a solid anthology of stuff you'd actually read after college.

I keep meaning to get a teacher's copy (perk!) but its name is so unassuming that I've forgotten for actual weeks to look it up. Consider this my own reminder.

No, I'm not some kind of shill for the book or getting paid to gush. I just really love a good collection, and this one took me by surprise.