For the uninformed, _Ten on Ten_ is a collection of ten well-known, modern essayists: George Orwell, E.B. White, James Baldwin, Alice Walker, Annie Dillard, Cynthia Ozick, Stephen J. Gould, Virgina Woolf, Joan Didion, and Lewis Thomas. While the above writers are certainly shining stars, the organization of their essays is where the true power of this book lies; the selections in this collection are not grouped by author, but by theme, themes that are both familiar and provocative. These themes include: Heroes and Heroines, Teaching and Learning, Moments of Insight and The Power of Langauge. This design, coupled with the excellence of the authors and the power of the essays selected makes this one of the most captivating collections I have found to date.
For teachers, this book also includes short introductions to each essay, questions focusing on style, language and other literary devices, suggestions for writing assignments, and a comprehensive biographical and critical essay about each writer. There is also a preface for instructors which offers ideas on how to incorporate the book into your writing or compostion classes.
My students have poured themselves into the essays in this book. They have even read beyond my requirements simply because they enjoyed the essays under certain themes. This fact alone makes the book worthwhile for me. Couple the students' interest with all that I have mentioned above, and one has a book that is more than worthwhile -- it's outstanding.