Here I list and review the memoirs I read in 2024!
Man of Two Faces
by Viet Thanh Nguyen
Viet Thanh Nguyen is so goddamn good at writing. Every single time I read a work of his, I am completely enthralled. A great reflection on the immigrant and Asian American condition, on belonging, on identity, and on sincerity.
Stay True
by Hua Hsu
Oh my god. Hua Hsu is SUCH A GOOD WRITER. Thank you to Justine Sato for lending me a copy. I could go on and on about this book, but I cannot recommend it enough. Rarely do I cry reading a book, but this is one of them.
Please read it.
The Message
by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Captivating, haunting, and insightful. Ta-Nehisi Coates is a brilliant writer and a deeply grounded human being. From his ancestral homeland of Senegal, to his childhood home in Maryland, and to the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel, Coates’ weaving of narratives is brilliantly done. It is the story of a man deeply committed to justice who, for the first time, sees that the evils of the world have not perished with the past: but often continue in a new skin, with new words.
Dear Elia
by Mimi Khúc
![Dear Elia: Letters from the Asian American Abyss [Book]](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KEJ8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff36df263-db31-45a3-b2b3-88523f405002_1707x2560.jpeg "Dear Elia: Letters from the Asian American Abyss [Book]")
Mimi Khúc’s reflections on Asian American mental health are a must read. Thank you to Dana for recommending it to me. Beautifully written.
The Best We Could Do
by Thi Bui
I think this is the first graphic novel (technically) I’ve ever read that was a memoir. Thi Bui’s story reminds me in many ways of my own mother: The Best We Could Do is a deeply moving story of loss, love, and finding home.