Book · 2018 · Poetry (poetic works by one author)
Book of the Dead
Why people recommend it
Book of the Dead by Muriel Rukeyser and Catherine Venable Moore is a powerful historical and literary exploration documenting the devastating industrial disaster at Hawks Nest, West Virginia, where hundreds of tunnel workers suffered and died from silicosis. The work was prominently featured in an October 2023 episode of Behind the Bastards, where host Robert Evans and guest Jason Pargin examined the tragedy. Jason Pargin strongly recommended that listeners seek out Muriel Rukeyser's text, citing it as an essential contemporary epic poem and a foundational historical source that provided vital firsthand accounts of the harrowing workplace catastrophe. Pargin explained that Rukeyser's writing served as one of the two primary source materials he utilized to thoroughly research the multi-part podcast episode on the deadliest industrial accident in American history. Additionally, Robert Evans read excerpts from a historical FBI file that acknowledged the book in passing as an important piece of literature dealing with the industrial disintegration of a marginalized community devastated by corporate negligence and disease. Together, the hosts used the publication to honor the forgotten victims, underscore the grim realities of unchecked corporate power, and preserve the painful memory of a catastrophic failure in American labor history.
Who recommended it
- Jason Pargin Recommended
- Robert Evans Discussed
Jason Pargin — 3 mentions
“there was an epic poem about the Hawks Nest tunnel disaster the Book of the Dead written by Muriel Riser”
“so I do want to encourage people check out Muriel riser's Book of the Dead”
“so the two books I read for this are are Muriel riser's The Book of the Dead and then the hawk nest tunnel Disaster by by this guy chernak um who is”
Robert Evans — 1 mention
“the FBI mentions the book of the dead only once in passing as a work that dealt with the industrial disintegration of the peoples in a West Virginia Village riddled with silicosis”