In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book.
Kim Samek’s story collection I Am the Ghost Here is brilliantly absurd while remaining masterfully grounded in the human condition.
Booklist wrote of the book:
“With sharp prose, dark yet hopeful humor, and imaginative daring, Samek takes a unique look at existential crises, poignantly capturing the dissonance between who we believe or want ourselves to be and the realities that erode those beliefs.”
In her own words, here is Kim Samek’s Book Notes music playlist for her story collection I Am the Ghost Here:
My surreal debut short story collection I Am the Ghost Here follows twelve women who lose control of their bodies, their narratives, and their lives as they search for meaning in a weird world. These women are trying to get by—as mothers, as people looking for connection in strange places.
I’ve assembled some of the songs that capture the mood of key moments in the collection. The stories are filled with nostalgia for a simpler time, so this playlist reflects a ‘90s and Aughts sensibility.
“Not a Robot, but a Ghost” – Andrew Bird
The titular story follows a man who has hired a puppeteer to take over his life. “The Sharpest Knife” depicts a marriage in which a husband believes he’s turned into a robot and demands frequent oiling from his wife. I imagine this song playing as the robot-husband moves in with his new caretaker, hired to oil his joints.
“I Want You to Love Me” – Fiona Apple
In “Egg Mother,” a woman turns into scrambled eggs shortly after giving birth. She is unable to take care of her child. “I Want You to Love Me” accompanies the moment she sleeps inside of the refrigerator to stay fresh.
“I Set My Face to the Hillside” – Tortoise
“Everything Disappears When You’re Having Fun” follows Ms. Roo and Turtle, two strangers who argue over what to do with a rogue office chair that sends people to ocean disasters. They decide to split custody of the chair, which allows them to get to know each other. Later, they set off on a road trip to Vegas. “I Set My Face to the Hillside” accompanies their drive. The song conjures the emptiness of the desert and the feeling of openness they experience after being caught up in the grind of daily life. I named one of the characters Turtle, so this Tortoise song naturally sprang into my head.
“You Can Have It All” – Yo La Tengo
I can’t resist an upbeat sad song. Music helps me get into a complex tonal headspace. It conjures Ms. Roo and Turtle in Vegas dreaming of a future trip together. It’s a song that is as much about being in love as it is about the difficulty of loving someone.
“’79 aka The Shouty Track” – Lemon Jelly
“Trash Heap Hero” features Nit, a firefighter who enjoys her job putting out trash heap fires in Thailand. I imagine Nit standing at the top of her trash heap battling fires with this song playing. Maybe that would be the Apple commercial version.
“All My Friends” – LCD Soundsystem
In “Return,” a group of friends decide to travel back to the past, only to be sent to the future. The song is about the passage of time as friendships change.
“Space Song” – Beach House
This is how I imagine time travel feels in old age.
“Breezeblocks” – Alt-J
“Muscle to Muscle, Toe to Toe” is about two former tap dancers who meet in a store and later discover they had been shown the same ads and videos by a marketing algorithm. I wrote this story after watching a tap performance on a social media reel, set to “Breezeblocks.” I’d become interested in how life might look if marketing algorithms were used to connect people.
“Everyday” – Fiona Apple & Jon Brion
The two lovers go on a honeymoon tour that takes them to the sites featured in their favorite travel videos. This song feels like an expression of peak love, though Apple’s voice infuses a wistfulness.
“Queen of Venus” – Remy Zero
“Another Toad in the Feely Box” follows a creepy boss who puts strange objects into children’s museum feely boxes, and his employee, Bird, who quits her job but then falls into depression soon afterward. She doesn’t know there is a woman in Thailand who is paid to spy on her through a Roomba. Weirdness ensues. Remy Zero remains an under-the-radar gem. It’s worth digging up their raw eponymous album as well as their mature work.
“Barracuda” – Miho Hatori
In “The Garbage Patch,” Thuy craves two things: plastic and connection. I think of this song as Thuy heads off in a boat toward The Garbage Patch on the brink of achieving these dreams. She has finally met a man she can tolerate, and he also likes eating plastic, so they’re set.
“Ghost” – Neutral Milk Hotel
“The Milf Hotel” follows an alt-girl turned housewife who ends up on a dating show for grieving widows. She has never come to terms with her husband’s suicide and thinks the reality show will fix her problems. She is haunted by the ghost of her husband and the ghost of her former self.
“Not For Sale” – CocoRosie
In “The Cloud,” the main character loses her limbs when the power goes out. This song accompanies the moment she wanders through the house trying to make do without her arm.
“Party on a Floating Cake” – Takaka Minekawa, Dustin Wong
Roll over end credits.
Bonus Playlist
In “The Garbage Patch,” Thuy feels a nostalgia for a gritty, grunge and post-grunge Seattle. Here are a few bands that defined that time:
“Pillars” – Sunny Day Real Estate
“Else” – Built to Spill
“405” (acoustic) – Death Cab For Cutie
“All Your Friends Are Comedians” – Juno
Juno was a short-lived band that didn’t stay together long enough to ascend to national relevance. They didn’t fit neatly into the scene and perhaps suffered for being uncategorizable. Their albums are out of print, but you can find them if you scour resale sites.
“Dancin’ Shoes” – Murder City Devils
“Pieces of Sky” – Tomo Nakayama
Kim Samek is a half-Thai Emmy-nominated writer and television producer whose credits include MTV’s Catfish and PBS’s WordGirl. She studied German literature and creative writing at Stanford University. Her stories have appeared in Guernica, Ecotone, Electric Literature, North American Review, Chicago Quarterly Review, swamp pink, Gulf Coast, Southern Humanities Review, The Threepenny Review, Story, and ZYZZYVA. Her short fiction has won a Pushcart Prize. A native of Seattle, she lives in Los Angeles.