'Don't Call Us Dead' and portrayals of the afterlife in literature

This week on the MashReads podcast, we discuss Don't Call Us Dead, a poetry collection by Danez Smith, focusing on "Summer, Somewhere," the book's breathtaking 25 page opening poem about the afterlife of black boys murdered by police. Then, inspired by the depiction of paradise in "Summer, Somewhere," we discuss our favorite portrayals of death and the afterlife in literature including: Lincoln In The Bardo by George Saunders, The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak, the Mediator series by Meg Cabot, the Abhorsen series by Garth Nix, and No Exit by Jean-Paul Sartre.Then, as always we close the show with recommendations:
You can see Peter's "u bum" sweatshirt here.
Aliza recommends watching the movie Scream this month for Halloween. "It is a meta treatise on slasher films... I would recommend that if you're uneasy but interested in scary movies, then check out Scream." Also, she is embarking on a quest to watch one horror movie each day in October. You can follow along on her 31 day quest here.
Peter recommends you watch the horror movie A Dark Song, a hidden gem on Netflix. "It's really quiet and it ratchets up the dread a little bit at a time, and it's really fun, in the way that horror movies are good. It's great and atmospheric."
MJ recommends all of the articles celebrating the rise of Cardi B, especially "Bloody Slippers: The Fairy-Tale Come-Up of Cardi B" by Lindsay Zoladz and "Cardi B, the Female Rapper Who Ousted Taylor Swift From the Top of the Charts." "Just shout out to Cardi B and her tremendous achievement. 'Bodak Yellow' is a bop, through and through." He also recommends "Is True Love Real, Y/N," an advice column by JP Brammer for Grindr's digital magazine Into. "I read this essay and I got Cheryl Strayed, Tiny Beautiful Things level chills."

This week on the MashReads podcast, we discuss Don't Call Us Dead, a poetry collection by Danez Smith, focusing on "Summer, Somewhere," the book's breathtaking 25 page opening poem about the afterlife of black boys murdered by police.
 
Then, inspired by the depiction of paradise in "Summer, Somewhere," we discuss our favorite portrayals of death and the afterlife in literature including: Lincoln In The Bardo by George Saunders, The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak, the Mediator series by Meg Cabot, the Abhorsen series by Garth Nix, and No Exit by Jean-Paul Sartre.

Then, as always we close the show with recommendations:

You can see Peter's "u bum" sweatshirt here.

Aliza recommends watching the movie Scream this month for Halloween. "It is a meta treatise on slasher films... I would recommend that if you're uneasy but interested in scary movies, then check out Scream." Also, she is embarking on a quest to watch one horror movie each day in October. You can follow along on her 31 day quest here.

Peter recommends you watch the horror movie A Dark Song, a hidden gem on Netflix. "It's really quiet and it ratchets up the dread a little bit at a time, and it's really fun, in the way that horror movies are good. It's great and atmospheric."

MJ recommends all of the articles celebrating the rise of Cardi B, especially "Bloody Slippers: The Fairy-Tale Come-Up of Cardi B" by Lindsay Zoladz and "Cardi B, the Female Rapper Who Ousted Taylor Swift From the Top of the Charts." "Just shout out to Cardi B and her tremendous achievement. 'Bodak Yellow' is a bop, through and through." He also recommends "Is True Love Real, Y/N," an advice column by JP Brammer for Grindr's digital magazine Into. "I read this essay and I got Cheryl Strayed, Tiny Beautiful Things level chills."