Stay True
by Hua Hsu
Stay True is the Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir of a Taiwanese teenager becoming a young adult in 1990s California. In 1995, Hua heads to the University of California, Berkeley, to study political science. As a college student, he defines himself by what he is not: not trendy, not ordinary, and not outgoing. Creating zines and snapping film, Hua builds an identity he is relatively content with until he meets Ken. Like Hua, Ken is also Asian-American but, unlike Hua, he is easily delighted and unconcerned. In this vulnerable and touching account, Hsu tells not only his own story but the tragic story of Ken. The memoir recounts Hsu’s experience growing up as a second-generation Taiwanese American, focusing on the formative moments that led up to his friendship with Ken. Stay True is a true story of identity and perseverance that will leave a long-lasting impact on readers.
World Within a Song
by Jeff Tweedy
Through the intersection of memory and song, this memoir by the frontman of the ’90s alt-rock band Wilco examines moments where music had a lasting impact on the singer/songwriter’s life and career, from hearing Lene Loviche’s “Lucky Number” on late-night TV to finally admitting his love for Abba after hearing “Dancing Queen” in the grocery store. Some of Tweedy’s most meaningful musical connections arise from hilarious and heartwarming moments that recall what it was like to develop a taste in music before the internet age. World Within a Song is a short, snappy story that will leave readers reflecting on their own life-changing musical favorites.
Consider the Lobster
by David Foster Wallace
In Consider the Lobster, David Foster Wallace is both a fly on the wall and a glaring intrusion on John McCain’s presidential bus, at the 1998 Adult Video News Awards, and in front of the world’s largest lobster tank. In this collection of essays, the late author mixes slang with paragraph-long sentences, effortlessly moving from criticisms of the porn industry and celebrity memoirs to personal essays on Kafka’s humor and the 9/11 attacks. In doing so, our correspondent — as Wallace coins himself — masterfully articulates the contradictions inherent in humanity. Though the bulk of its essays were written in the mid-’90s, Consider the Lobster is perpetually relevant and is a must-read for anyone interested in literary journalism or the human condition.
This article is featured in the January/February 2025 issue of The Saturday Evening Post. Subscribe to the magazine for more art, inspiring stories, fiction, humor, and features from our archives.
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