The catalyst- and additive-free cascade reactions between 2-alkynylbenzoic acids and nitrogen-containing nucleophiles on water form an efficient and selective method for the assembly of 3-hydroxyisoindolinones. This protocol features readily available starting materials, an environmentally benign solvent, simple operation, extraordinarily broad substrate scope, good functional group tolerance, excellent selectivity, good to excellent yields, high atom- and step-economy, and high bond-forming efficiency, thus providing a convenient and highly efficient access to 3-hydroxyisoindolinones. More information can be found in the Full Paper by Jingwei Zhao, Fei Zhao et al. on page 2073 in Issue 11, 2019 (DOI: 10.1002/ajoc.201900519).