The Best American Nonrequired Reading

The books in this series are anthologies published annually, and each volume can be read independently. There is no overarching narrative or character progression that requires a specific reading order.

The series is guest-edited by a different notable author each year, with the final selections made by students from 826 Valencia, a non-profit writing and tutoring center.

Its distinctive feature is the editorial process, where high school students curate the collection, offering a fresh and often unconventional perspective on contemporary literature that might not be found in other 'best of' anthologies.