Hua Hsu

The Pulitzer Prize winner is coming to Zurich for the first time!

Hua Hsu, born in 1977 in the USA to Taiwanese immigrants, is an author and professor of English at Bard College. In his work, he explores topics such as immigration and the public perception of diversity and multiculturalism. With his autobiographical novel Stay True, he has achieved a literary sensation: the book became a New York Times bestseller and was chosen as the best book of the year by numerous newspapers and magazines. Moreover, he received the highest accolade from US literary critics: the National Book Critics Circle Award. And as if all that weren't enough, he also received the prestigious Pulitzer Prize on top of it!

Stay True is a sincere, tender, and touching memoir about coming of age, focusing on intense youth friendships and the search for meaning and belonging. The Japanese-American family of Ken has lived in the USA for generations. In the eyes of eighteen-year-old Hua Hsu, the problem with Ken is that he is just like everyone else: mainstream – how boring! Hua, the son of Taiwanese immigrants who makes zines and browses record stores, sees himself as the exact opposite. Yet, the two become close friends until Ken is violently and senselessly taken from life.