Some People Need Killing Makes It to New York Times' Best Books of 2023
A powerful piece on Duterte's war on drugs.
Filipino author, journalist, and documentary filmmaker Patricia Evangelista's Some People Need Killing: A Memoir of Murder in My Country has been named one of the top ten best books by the New York Times.
"I want them to remember what happened," Evangelista said during an interview with CNN Philippines. "I want them to see the names and see the faces. Imagine the lives that were lost and imagine the lives that were lived."
Apart from being named to the New York Times' notable books list, Some People Need Killing was included in TIME Magazine's Top 100 Must-Read Books of 2023.
Also read: Spot Shelf: Patricia Evangelista's Some People Need Killing Is an Ode to Truth
What's the big deal with Some People Need Killing by Patricia Evangelista?
The book is a powerful retelling of the nation during the previous administration's bloody War on Drugs campaign through the eyes of a journalist who saw the brutality up close. It chronicles Evangelista's experiences as a reporter, recounting how extrajudicial killings run amok in the country. She would investigate police, vigilantes, killers, and survivors in what is just an impeccable piece of literary journalism. The book also delves into the erosion of democratic institutions and the grips of a culture of impunity during the Duterte administration.
Published in October 2023, Some People Need Killing is considered a "journalistic masterpiece," as The New Yorker's David Remnick puts it. It had been launched at the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University, New York, and hit Filipino bookstores on the same day. The documentary filmmaker is also in the United States for security reasons because of the publishing of the book.
In the past, Evangelista has been a youth columnist at The Philippine Star, columnist for The Philippine Daily Inquirer, field reporter for Rappler, and writer-at-large for Esquire Philippines.