--- description: Find out why "Stay True" by Hua Hsu is on TIME's list of the must-read books of the year. title: 'Stay True' Is One of the 100 Must-Read Books of 2022 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt03fff06174903a0a/698a37ba16d884652dc3b485/StayTrue.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Nov 14, 2022 # Stay True by Hua Hsu by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  _New Yorker_ staff writer Hua Hsu’s coming-of-age memoir explores the power of friendship—including the many ways it impacts identity. Hsu, the son of Taiwanese immigrants, attended college in Berkeley, Calif., where he bought his clothes at thrift stores and spent his free time making zines. He unexpectedly became close friends with Abercrombie & Fitch-wearing Ken, a Japanese American student who appeared to be his opposite. Yet the two bonded over late-night conversations and long drives along the coast. After Ken was violently killed in a carjacking, Hsu began writing, and the result is this beautiful work, singed with grief. —_Angela Haupt_ **Buy Now**: _Stay True_ on [Bookshop](https://bookshop.org/a/4973/9780385547772 "undefined") | [Amazon](https://amzn.to/3Tu4n5m "undefined") **Contact us at** [letters@time.com](mailto:letters@time.com?subject=%28READER%20FEEDBACK%29%20Stay%20True&body=https%3A%2F%2Ftime.com%2Fcollection-post%2F6228627%2Fstay-true%2F "undefined")**.** ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/must-read-books-2022/6228627/stay-true/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/must-read-books-2022/6228627/stay-true/"},"headline":"Stay True","datePublished":"2022-11-14T12:53:31.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T00:10:48.136Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/must-read-books-2022/6228627/stay-true/","keywords":["Books","list","best books"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt03fff06174903a0a/698a37ba16d884652dc3b485/StayTrue.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt03fff06174903a0a/698a37ba16d884652dc3b485/StayTrue.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/must-read-books-2022/6228627/stay-true/","name":"Stay True"}}]}] ```