A review by bookbrig
They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us by Hanif Abdurraqib

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

5.0

I first discovered Hanif Abdurraqib via this video of him reading the piece Defiance, Ohio is the Name of a Band (on YouTube here:  youtube.com/watch?v=2VJJJOdOfEE), and it was so good I wanted to read more of his stuff. Then I saw that he recorded the narration for the audio version of this book, so I gave it a try. It's SO good. Not just the writing or the narration, but both together and the asides added to the original text and also the forward and afterward by Ewing and Reynolds. There's so much going on in these essays, so even if you're like me and don't know all the musical artists that come up it's still going to draw you in and keep you listening. This is one I'm planning to buy in both audio and physical, for the different qualities each version bring to the work. 

Some are joyful and some are heart-wrenching and all of them are reflective and interesting and it makes for an excellent collection. Might be a good crossover read for your teens into music too. Highly recommend!
Expand filter menu Content Warnings