Deadline Artists – Edited by John Avlon, Jesse Angelo & Errol Louis

Do you have a favorite newspaper columnist whom you often read? Do you occasionally pass on a newspaper column that you have read to a friend? (or these days might it be a great blog?)Well, imagine if you had a chance to read some of the best columns that have been written over the past two hundred years. That is exactly what the editors of this book have offered us as they compiled what they believe are the best of the best. They did this by going to many sources and experts including some contemporary writers and asked them to suggest their favorites over the years. They divided the book into sections such as social issues, war, politics. humor, sports etc. Some columnists that may be familiar depending on your age are Nora Efron, Jimmy Breslin, Drew Pearson, Teddy Roosevelt and even Benjamin Franklin, Some of the chosen columnists are still writing such as Thomas Friedman.  You may know some of them as great authors and may not have realized that they started as newspaper writers such as Ernest Hemingway. Some of the pieces are classics such as the famous column which is reprinted in many newspapers every year whch starts off- “ Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.” There are works by legendary sportswriters such as Grantland Rice’s The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. There is  Ernie Pyle writing about the average soldier from the war front during WWII. Many of us read on the run or in-between things or a bit before we go to sleep. Since newspaper columns by their very nature are short pieces that you can digest as a little dessert. It also means that if  is there is a topic that is not your piece of cake or is so outdated that it no longer has meaning or interest (and there were a few in this category) you can just move on  to the next one. However, if you appreciate history in the making and are fascinated by social commentary of the times , don’t skip this book.