Just In Case We Die
In 2006, Quintessence Editions Ltd. published a book entitled "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die". Edited by academic Peter Boxall, this list was a curated selection of novels deemed "essential" for literature lovers. Over time, as books were added and removed to accommodate new tastes, the list has continued to grow into subsequent volumes. As of today, there have been 1,316 novels included in the list. Aaron, Rodney, and Rebecca will attempt to read and discuss every single one of them. Sort of.
Just In Case We Die
Latest Episodes
May 2026 -- Bonus (Knife: The Attempted Assassination of Salman Rushdie)
On Sunday, May 3, 2026, The Davis Theatre in Chicago had a single screening of Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie, a new film by Academy-Award-winning director Alex Gibney, as part of the annual Doc10 Festival. This film is ...
"Cloud Cuckoo Land" by Anthony Doerr -- Veto #4
Once upon a time, Aaron recommended a novel he had recently completed to Rebecca, citing it as his favorite novel of 2021. Already familiar with the work of the author, Rebecca jumped right in, despite Aaron’s misgivings about the science-ficti...
April 2026 -- Bonus Episode (Spring Cleaning)
Last year, for the bonus material in April, Just In Case We Die celebrated National Library Week with a lively discussion about some of the unique things libraries are doing all around the world. The year before that, the cast celebrat...
"A Brief History of the Dead" by Kevin Brockmeier -- Veto #3
Back in January, the random number generator gave us #1, 167. This number corresponded to a Cuban novel by Guillermo Cabrera Infante entitled Three Trapped Tigers. None of the cast had heard of it.Research ensued, and the follow...
March 2026 -- Bonus (Women's History Month)
It occurred to the crew here at Just In Case We Die that a vast majority of the broadcast space is devoted to male authors. It would seem that the editors of the original list didn’t have as many women writers that they found to be “es...