Below, our favorite stories of the week. Kindle users, you can also get them as a Readlist.
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1. Giving Away ‘Anatoly Z.’
Lisa Belkin | Yahoo News | Dec. 10, 2014 | 30 minutes (7,625 words)
The story of a boy’s un-adoption. The original family struggles with whether it made the right decision, while a new family tries to succeed in helping him.
2. Livin’ Thing: An Oral History of ‘Boogie Nights’
Alex French, Howie Kahn | Grantland | Dec. 10, 2014 | 65 minutes (16,325 words)
How Paul Thomas Anderson created his Lawrence of Arabia for the San Fernando Valley porn scene.
3. Their Town
Ashley Powers | The California Sunday Magazine | Dec. 5, 2014 | 19 minutes (4,926 words)
A border town controlled by Warren Jeffs, a leader of a polygamous sect of Mormons who is currently serving a life sentence in prison for sexually assaulting underage girls, has treated outsiders poorly and made life difficult for a former sect member and his family.
4. In Pahokee, Football Serves as a Way Out
Lane DeGregory | Tampa Bay Times | Dec. 4, 2014 | 28 minutes (7,127 words)
In a small, impoverished town in Florida, a high school football player works diligently to get a college scholarship and fulfill his dreams of playing for a Division I school.
5. The Untold Story of the Doodler Murders
Elon Green | The Awl | Dec. 11, 2014 | 17 minutes (4,288 words)
A writer investigates a serial killer who stalked San Francisco’s gay bars in the 1970’s.