The very best writing from one of America’s most groundbreaking literary magazines.

When Creative Nonfiction debuted in 1994, the literary genre it championed was largely the target of skepticism or downright ridicule. But at a time when few editors were interested in the personal essay, the magazine doggedly explored new ideas and fresh modes of expression, and over the next three decades, its contributors pioneered what would come to be known as the “fourth genre.”

The thirty-two essays collected here bring together some of the finest work Creative Nonfiction published over its seventy-eight issues. Read Pulitzer Prize-winner Charles Simic’s boyhood remembrances of the bombing of Belgrade, Carolyn Forche’s haunting, lyric catalog of her daily life as she faced down a cancer diagnosis, and John Edgar Wideman’s meditation on the photo of a murdered boy his same age—Emmett Till—and how the image haunted him forever. Here, you'll find work by such luminaries as Adrienne Rich and John McPhee, but also essays from more contemporary voices like Brian Broome, Elizabeth Fortescue, and Anne McGrath.

With an introduction by Lee Gutkind, Creative Nonfiction’s founder and editor, this collection captures the evolution of a genre and the amazing work of the little magazine that helped make it all happen. 

From hot air balloons to home-built aircraft, the people of Oregon pursued every opportunity to explore the skies.

By the late 1800s, air travel had captured the imagination of the entire nation. From hot air balloons to home-built aircraft, the people of Oregon pursued every opportunity to explore the skies. At the 1905 world’s fair exposition, held in Portland, audiences gazed in awe as dirigibles claimed the title of first controlled flight in the state. Soon after, airfields began to dot the countryside. In 1910, Charles Hamilton became the first pilot to fly in Oregon, and by 1926, regular air mail deliveries were commonplace. Daring early aviators like Eugene Ely, Charles Walsh and Silas Christofferson lost their lives but have never been forgotten.

Author Arthur H. Redman explores Oregon’s aviation history. 

The Hawaiian island chain has long been a crossroads of cultures. Oahu’s name is sometimes translated as “the gathering place,” and its appeal is undeniable. Even before the arrival of Western powers, Hawaiian chiefs struggled for control of the island. As far back as the 1700s, many would-be colonizers had their eyes on Pearl Harbor—the United States, the British, the Russians, and the Japanese. For decades, only one thing was certain. The Hawaiian monarchy would not be left alone to rule their own people. More than a hundred years before “the day of infamy,” December 7, 1941, the story of the United States’ military occupation of Hawaii begins with the Western world’s discovery of what was at the time called Wai Momi, the beautiful and, unfortunately, strategically located “waters of pearl.”

Sarah Bellian is a historian and curator of the Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum at Pearl Harbor. She previously worked in museums and public history in Texas and Idaho. During the pandemic, she began a deep dive into Hawaii’s often difficult relationship with the US military. In addition to telling stories, she enjoys craft beers, historical swordsmanship, and playing roller derby.

Author Alan Brown guides the intrepid on a dark tour of the Pelican State’s most infamous residents. Louisiana beckons those the world over with its culture and Spanish moss–draped beauty. But that magnetic pull has also summoned a cast of reprobates vile enough to fill a book. In this version of Louisiana, pirate Jean Lafitte and gentlemanly train robber Eugene Bunch go ahead and help themselves to whatever they like, murderous dentist Etienne De Champs is the stuff of dentophobic nightmares, a psychotic killer known as “The Axeman” stalks the streets of New Orleans and a hail of bullets greets Bonnie and Clyde. Indeed, the sadistic Delphine LaLaurie and Voodoo Queen Clementine Barnabet are quite comfortable in this decidedly non-moss-draped history.

Founded in 1905, Richmond, California, boasts 32 miles of shoreline and is centrally located within the San Francisco Bay Area. From a nationally registered historic district to its critical role in World War II, Richmond fits the quintessential historic bill—both on land and at sea.

Enjoy this glimpse into a past that is still very present courtesy of two native Richmond daughters, Desiree Heveroh and Victoria Stuhr, with images from Richmond Museum of History & Culture, Point Richmond History Association, and the Richmond Public Library.

Learn about efforts underway to save the historic and environmentally important Fourth Street Preserve.

IIn 1670, the first officially deeded land in Lewes was granted by the Duke of York to the town’s earliest settler, Helmanias Wiltbanck—30 of the original 104 acres of Wiltbanck’s beloved preserve remain pristine and undeveloped today, right in the heart of Lewes. Three families owned this land for 312 of the past 355 years. Their tales involve attacks by pirate ships and the British, death and survival during the “fever years” and a prominent but forgotten judge who helped write the original Delaware Constitution and fund its Revolutionary War troops.

Local author and preservation leader Michael Rawl tells these stories and unfolds the long history of this piece of the heart of Lewes.