Stay True: A Conversation with Hua Hsu and Lucy Sante

In the eyes of eighteen-year old Hua Hsu, the problem with Ken—with his passion for Dave Matthews, Abercrombie & Fitch, and his fraternity—is that he is exactly like everyone else. Ken, whose Japanese American family has been in the United States for generations, is mainstream; for Hua, the son of Taiwanese immigrants, who makes ’zines and haunts Bay Area record shops, Ken represents all that he defines himself in opposition to. The only thing Hua and Ken have in common is that, however they engage with it, American culture doesn’t seem to have a place for either of them.

On September 28, 2022, Pioneer Works hosted the launch of New Yorker staff writer Hua Hsu's acclaimed memoir of friendship, music, art, and grief, Stay True. The event featured a special conversation between Hsu and one of his literary heroes, Lucy Sante. ♦