‘obituaries read in autotune’
— Hannah Cohen
Reminiscent of ‘The Bell Jar’ and ‘The Valley of the Dolls’, Diana Khong’s newest poem is acidic and dreamy. We’re treated to pictures of product placement, prescription drugs, lobotomies. Without capitalization or stanzas, it reads more like a diary entry written during several states of mind. Seemingly melodramatic lines such as “someone loves her. but that was never the point” become truths that sink into our gut.
I’d like to believe we all know an unhappy girl who “ends their name in -y, -ie”, a girl who is slipping while the world watches her fail. ‘obituaries read in autotune’ reflects our dark obsession over girls with a dark side, girls who can’t even die without being called pretty.