#26. "Different Seasons" by Stephen King

The one issue that could be lobbied against Stephen King is that some of his stories tend to be a little too long. For instance, his most iconic books ("IT," "The Stand," etc.) fall somewhere in the quadruple digits and may have some excisable material. It's generally why his short stories collections are usually a breath of fresh air, and few have achieved that quite like "Different Seasons." Even if they're not his shortest short stories, they feature arguably two of his most iconic works ("Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" and "The Body") as well as two perverse secondary works ("Apt Pupil" and "The Breathing Method"). While one could argue that his other anthologies collect more great short stories, there's definitely not one that is as effective and succinct in capturing the genius behind the author quite like this one, which explores empathy and horror in equal measure, adding new wrinkles to the King of Horror's overall reputation.

#25. "The Disaster Artist" by Greg Sestero and Tom Bissell

The idea of a movie being "so bad it's good" is a concept that's been around almost since the dawn of the format. It's the concept that a film can have a certain level of incompetence, yet still maintain a charm usually saved for the scholarly movies where every detail has been pondered over. In the short existence of the 21st century, director Tommy Wiseau's The Room has been hailed as "the greatest worst movie ever made," and for good reason. However, it's not just a bad movie. It's a work of art, and writers Greg Sestero and Tom Bissell create a surreal vision of Wiseau's inability to be a master filmmaker, jumping between sympathy and animosity almost every other paragraph. It's a humorous read, but what makes it an effective piece to The Room's cult-like mythology is that even when acknowledging the problems, Sestero still loves Wiseau and "The Disaster Artist" is a story of an unlikely friendship.