Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images

This week, we’re sharing stories from Casey Parks, Cathy Newman, Zach Baron, Molly Priddy, and Christopher Solomon.

Sign up to receive this list free every Friday in your inbox.

* * *

1. His Only Living Boy

Casey Parks | The Trace | December 12, 2018 | 33 minutes (8,260 words)

Roger Stringer, a father and gun owner in Mississippi, testifies against his older son, Zac, in the shooting that kills his younger son, Justin. Zac goes to prison, but eventually Roger learns that the rifle in the incident — a Remington Model 700 — is at fault.

2. Susan Potter Will Live Forever

Cathy Newman | National Geographic | December 20, 2018 | 16 minutes (4,076 words)

When Susan Potter died of pneumonia at the age of 87, she donated her body to the Visible Human Project so it could be sliced and photographed. The images would be digitized and used to create a virtual cadaver that medical students could use to dissect and reassemble with the stroke of a few keys.

3. The Fresno Bee and the War on Local News

Zach Baron | GQ | December 19, 2018 | 26 minutes (6,611 words)

At a time when local newsrooms are shrinking or closing entirely — and Trump is calling the news media “the enemy of the people” — Zach Baron visits the reporters and editors of The Fresno Bee in California’s Central Valley, where Republican Rep. Devin Nunes declared war on the paper.

4. How to Thrive as a Sober Queer Through the Holigays

Molly Priddy | Autostraddle | December 7, 2018 | 6 minutes (1,527 words)

In a piece that’s part personal essay and part service journalism, Molly Priddy shares how challenging it initially was going home for the holidays just after she got sober — and how it’s gotten better over the years. She also offers tips suggesting how others avoiding alcohol might get through the end-of-year forced family fun with their sanity — and sobriety — intact.

5. When the Body Says No

Christopher Solomon | Outside | December 17, 2018 | 8 minutes (2,167 words)

In this poignant piece, longtime runner Christopher Solomon considers loss and the body’s inevitable decline as he recounts how his father helped him fall in love with running, what running has meant to him over the decades, and the injury that stands between him, daily roadwork, and the peace and joy that it can bring.