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barizley's review against another edition
5.0
I took my time reading this, because I knew I would be sad to finish it. Sure enough, here I am, super sad.
Abdurraqib’s writing is so good that for me, sitting here, looking for silly little words to describe it feels stupid. ITS JUST GOOD WRITING THAT MAKES ME FEEL THINGS.
Abdurraqib’s writing is so good that for me, sitting here, looking for silly little words to describe it feels stupid. ITS JUST GOOD WRITING THAT MAKES ME FEEL THINGS.
literarycrushes's review against another edition
4.0
They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us by Hanif Abdurraqib is a masterful collection of essays that uses contemporary music as a springboard for conversations about race, violence, and the encroaching inner darkness that lurks behind everything in America. Abdurraqib’s writing is powerful and each piece, while short (most essays are only 3-4 pages long), was thought-provoking and heartbreaking.
Despite the brevity of this structure, each sentence was crafted as though it were its own poem and the book a love letter to music. While most of the music he writes about isn’t what I normally listen to (most of the music falls under the broad genres of punk, hardcore, and rap), his personal reflections on what it was like growing up as a black man in America – specifically in the Midwest – were incredibly thought provoking and moving. By the end of the book, I found myself wanting to go back and listen to old Fall Out Boy or Carly Rae Jepson albums through this lens.
Despite the brevity of this structure, each sentence was crafted as though it were its own poem and the book a love letter to music. While most of the music he writes about isn’t what I normally listen to (most of the music falls under the broad genres of punk, hardcore, and rap), his personal reflections on what it was like growing up as a black man in America – specifically in the Midwest – were incredibly thought provoking and moving. By the end of the book, I found myself wanting to go back and listen to old Fall Out Boy or Carly Rae Jepson albums through this lens.
claireviolet's review against another edition
4.5
this is such a singular work. this has cemented the fact that i will read anything hanif abdurraqib writes, and i cannot recommend the audiobook of this enough.
a_modernstoryteller's review against another edition
5.0
There's something about essay collections that tackle media and the connections that the author may have to it that is just amazing.
But at the same time saying that this book is just a collection of essays about music and films wouldn't make it justice, because it's so much more than that.
Because there's a big heart here, displayed in every essay and every text. It's a display where Hanif Abdurraqib shows us the music that he loves, the artists that have marked his life, the concerts that have mattered and he tells us: 'See? That's why all of this matters to me. That's what this evokes me, these are the feelings that come through, the thoughts they have brought me, the things that they have inspired me to say'
And that...
That's truly everything.
I guess what I'm trying to say here is that I love this kind of non-fiction that picks any piece of media and deconstructs it, trying to show it through the eyes and thoughts of the person that has loved and has been changed by it. And maybe that's why I love Bookstagram too. Isn't that what we do in the end?
TL;DR: I TOTALLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK!
But at the same time saying that this book is just a collection of essays about music and films wouldn't make it justice, because it's so much more than that.
Because there's a big heart here, displayed in every essay and every text. It's a display where Hanif Abdurraqib shows us the music that he loves, the artists that have marked his life, the concerts that have mattered and he tells us: 'See? That's why all of this matters to me. That's what this evokes me, these are the feelings that come through, the thoughts they have brought me, the things that they have inspired me to say'
And that...
That's truly everything.
I guess what I'm trying to say here is that I love this kind of non-fiction that picks any piece of media and deconstructs it, trying to show it through the eyes and thoughts of the person that has loved and has been changed by it. And maybe that's why I love Bookstagram too. Isn't that what we do in the end?
TL;DR: I TOTALLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK!
rolypolyreading's review against another edition
5.0
Finally my first 5 star of 2024. And it couldn’t have gone to a more deserving book.
Highly recommend the audiobook (it’s on hoopla)
Highly recommend the audiobook (it’s on hoopla)
halaurll's review
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.5
A great writer, I would have rated this higher if I hadn't read his other book A Little Devil in America (which blew my mind) first. Maybe it's unfair to compare them since he was older when he wrote that. But this is still a great read.
Favorite essays:
A Night in Bruce Springsteen's America
Fall Out Boy Forever
Black Life On Film
August 9, 2014
My First Police Stop
Favorite essays:
A Night in Bruce Springsteen's America
Fall Out Boy Forever
Black Life On Film
August 9, 2014
My First Police Stop