An annual collection of the twenty best contemporary short stories selected by series editor Laura Furman from hundreds of literary magazines, <i>The O. Henry Prize Stories 2008</i> is studded with extraordinary settings and characters: a teenager in survivalist Alaska, the seed keeper of a doomed Chinese village, a young woman trying to save her life in a Ukrainian internet café. Also included are the winning writers' comments on what inspired them, a short essay from each of the three eminent jurors, and an extensive resource list of literary magazines.