Recommendations

with Intense Feelings

by Adil Boughlala and Jonathan Zackor

JOY

They Both Die at the End, Adam Silvera

Content warning: (mentions of) death

The title says it all - Mateo and Rufus, two strangers, are confronted with the worst news they could hear: they will both die within 24 hours, at the end of the story. I can already hear you thinking “If they both die at the end, what’s the use of reading it? And why is it labelled as joy?”. Well, the beauty of this book lies not in looking back on your life, nor in worrying about death, but in living whatever you have left completely to the fullest.

The story is set in a future where Death-Cast tells you when you will die. Through another app, Last Friend, Mateo and Rufus meet each other and from there on, a love story like no other develops. What would you do in your last 24 hours? Find love, look back on your past mistakes, or make peace with your death and spend your final day with friends and family? For Mateo and Rufus, it is to go on an adventure and live a lifetime in a single day. There should be no regrets. This wonderful book that follows an LGBTQIA+ love story is but one of Adam Silvera’s many wonderful books. Now, spoiler alert, you will need tissues for this book!

Heux Tales, Jazmine Sullivan

Content warning: explicit language

INTIMACY Jazmine kicked off 2021 with her EP & SELF-LOVEHeux Tales (heux = French for happy, but also a wordplay on “ho”), which, to me, is an album that will be remembered for quite some time in the R&B scene. The album is very personal and, in my opinion, her best, as it follows themes of intimacy, love and change (for women). However, what makes this EP special is the alternation between songs and interludes, or, spoken word pieces. These interludes are titled as someone’s tale ([Name]’s Tale) and embody several women’s insights into love and sex. Sullivan not only creates a space for this conversation, in which women can love themselves, she also makes room for dialogue about the male ego and feminine sexuality.

Heaux Tales goes from up-beat pop songs (“Pick Up Your Feelings”), to more intimate and slow songs (“On It” ft. Ari Lennox and “Girl Like Me” ft. H.E.R. – both very great R&B artists!), to hip-hop (“Price Tags” ft. Anderson.Paak). Be sure to check out the album and some of Sullivan’s other songs (“Bust Your Windows” is one of my all-time favourites).

Depression Quest

Content warning: depression, mention of suicide

Mental illness, especially depression, is a trope that authors have always depended upon to make their (fictional) works more interesting. But does it actually educate the reader about mental illnesses, or does it only breed more and more stigma and stereotypes? After all, how many of those fictional works use mental illness to enhance their story in adequate ways, rather than as a scapegoat to make fun of, romanticise or problematise mental illness?

Depression Quest is nothing like that; the “interactive (non)fiction game about living with depression” follows the story of a person with depression (you are addressed as being that person). Throughout the story (which has quite some text because it is a work of fiction), you are confronted with making choices. However, – and this is where the brilliance of the game jumps forward – the game also illustrates the ways in which you are limited in your options and capacity in life when you have depression. Say, you want to go out with friends after a bad day. You can’t because your mental exhaustion literally tires your physical body. By using polaroid pictures, the game recollects personal stories that could apply to so many people. This game is not meant to be a fun or light-hearted experience. So, I strongly advise you not to play it if you are already feeling somewhat blue or experiencing depression yourself. To play the game, go to www.depressionquest.com.

DEPRESSION

Ghost Quartet

jealousy, rage, passionContent warning: depression, death, mentions of suicide, alcohol abuse, explicit words. Chances are that even after listening to Dave Malloy’s Ghost Quartet hundreds of times, you might be confused, and on a desperate search for the puzzle pieces that fit together. Two sisters, Rose and Pearl, who are also lovers, and a mother and daughter, are lost in the void of time and space. Driven by jealousy after finding out that the man she is in love with prefers her sister, Rose asks a bear to help with her revenge. He requires four things in return: one pot of honey, one piece of stardust, one secret baptism, and a photo of a ghost. Just like Rose, who has to travel through different timelines to collect these items, the audience is thrown into different stories throughout the course of the musical: a subway accident, a re-telling of an Edgar Allen Poe story, and a lowkey homoerotic, alcohol-infused evening with four friends.

Ghost Quartet is basically a concept album, filled with weirdness, uncertainty, ghosts, reincarnation, and a rage against the void. The musical extravagance and lyrical playfulness immerse you, until you find yourself going back to it again and again precisely because the quest to disentangle everything keeps you tied up. Its composer Dave Malloy is best known for the electro pop opera Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, a small musical adaptation of Tolstoy’s War and Peace. You can listen to Ghost Quartet, both a studio and a live version, on Spotify and as a special treat, Malloy even uploaded a freely-accessible performance on YouTube!