The Longreads Blog

A young man becomes paralyzed in a shooting near his church, and struggles with identifying the shooter, whom he recognizes as a former classmate (link includes parts one and two):

Surgeons had labored for five hours to patch his left lung, remove his left kidney and his spleen. They could do nothing to repair his L1 vertebra. His legs were paralyzed.

A nurse brought pad and pen. Davien wanted to tell his family about the shooting. He had recognized the shooter, but he was too scared to write down a name.

Instead, he scribbled: ‘I forgive them.’

Days later, Sheriff’s Det. Scott Schulze showed up at Davien’s bedside with a series of mug shots.

Davien spotted the shooter immediately. Jimmy Santana had taken gym classes with him in middle school and later joined a Latino gang, Monrovia Nuevo Varrio, or MNV.

The detective asked Davien if the shooter was among the photos.

Davien feared what could happen if he snitched. He also believed as a Christian that it was wrong to lie.

“Standing Up: Davien’s Story.” — Molly Hennessy-Fiske, The Los Angeles Times

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“Deadhead.” —Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, on the recorded history of the Grateful Dead

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A group of young doctors from the Clinical Excellence Research Center at the Stanford School of Medicine are looking for new models to make health care better and more affordable:

Patel was second up in the presentation, a little nervous and barely tall enough to be seen behind the podium. She stated the problem in her target area: Cancer is the second-leading cause of death in the United States, with costs estimated to be $173 billion by 2020. These rising costs are unsustainable.

And what do many poor-prognosis cancer patients get for all the money spent? ‘Horrible treatment,’ she said, citing a statistic that silenced the room: Seventy-three percent of terminal cancer patients never have an end-of-life discussion with their oncologists. ‘Many patients are rushed off to chemotherapy without understanding the big picture. And when predictable treatment side effects happen at night and on weekends, patients who are unable to reach their oncologist end up in misery in emergency rooms and hospitals. Later in their illness, many die painfully in intensive-care facilities that bankrupt their families emotionally – and sometimes financially.’

During her presentation, Patel’s eyes became dark pools that threatened to overflow. A few people in the audience wept silently, perhaps remembering loved ones who had similarly suffered.

‘Overall, these added services improve the quality of life of patients, giving them what they need and want without delay,’ she added after describing her model. ‘And best of all, we lower health insurance costs … simply by doing the right thing.’

“Against the Odds.” — Kris Newby, Stanford Medicine

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“Brad And Angie Go To Meet The African Pee Generator Girls.” —Sarah Miller, The Awl

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“A Mormon Reporter on the Romney Bus.” —McKay Coppins, BuzzFeed

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“A Chat with Writer Jon Ronson.” —Elise Czajkowski, The Awl

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Dozens of reporters have been killed in Mexico over the last 12 years by drug traffickers, and very little has been done to investigate their deaths and bring the murderers to justice:

Let us say that you are a Mexican reporter working for peanuts at a local television station somewhere in the provinces—the state of Durango, for example—and that one day you get a friendly invitation from a powerful drug-trafficking group. Imagine that it is the Zetas, and that thanks to their efforts in your city several dozen people have recently perished in various unspeakable ways, while justice turned a blind eye. Among the dead is one of your colleagues. Now consider the invitation, which is to a press conference to be held punctually on the following Friday, at a not particularly out of the way spot just outside of town. You were, perhaps, considering going instead to a movie? Keep in mind, the invitation notes, that attendance will be taken by the Zetas.

Imagine now that you arrive on the appointed day at the stated location, and that you are greeted by several expensively dressed, highly amiable men. Once the greetings are over, they have something to say, and the tone changes. We would like you, they say, to be considerate of us in your coverage. We have seen or heard certain articles or news reports that are unfair and, dare we say, displeasing to us. Displeasing. We have our eye on you. We would like you to consider the consequences of offending us further. We know you would not look forward to the result. We give warning, but we give no quarter. You are dismissed.

“Mexico: Risking Life for Truth.” — Alma Guillermoprieto, The New York Review of Books

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Submit a Story to Longreads

Publishers, writers, readers: You can submit a story to be featured as one of our upcoming Longreads Member Exclusives.  

We choose one story per week to send to our paid members, and we pay rights holders to reprint the story. 

Submission guidelines are below. You can email your submission, as a PDF or text file, to members@longreads.com

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

• We accept stories or book excerpts over 2,500 words. Priority will be given to stories that have been, or will be, published in a print magazine, online magazine, or as a book/ebook.

• Stories can be nonfiction or fiction, old or new.

• We do not currently accept stories that are already available for free on the web. (Stories behind a paywall, or stories featured in Google Books are acceptable.)

• We also accept reader recommendations! If you simply want to suggest a story or book that you love, please do so. If we like the story we will feature you alongside your recommendation.

Longreads Member Exclusive: The Creature Beyond the Mountains

This week, we’re excited to share a Longreads Exclusive from Orion, a publication that has been featured on Longreads in the past, with pieces from Charles C. Mann, Belle Boggs and Sy Montgomery. 

“The Creature Beyond the Mountains,” by Brian Doyle, is a story about the giant sturgeon in the Pacific Northwest—one, named Herman, weighs nearly 500 pounds—and about our relationship with them. Doyle is editor of Portland Magazine and writes frequently for Orion’s print edition and blog. His piece won the John Burroughs Award and was listed as “Notable” by both Best Science and Nature Writing 2012 and Best American Essays 2012See an excerpt here.

p.s. You can support Longreads—and get more exclusives like this—by becoming a member for just $3 per month.


(Illustration by Kjell Reigstad)

“The Innocent Man, Part Two.” —Pamela Colloff, Texas Monthly

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