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Quick answer: If you loved H Mart, read David Chang's Eat a Peach, then Joan Didion's The Year of Magical Thinking, then Trevor Noah's Born a Crime, and Tara Westover's Educated and Lori Gottlieb's Maybe You Should Talk to Someone. All are food memoirs and grief.
Michelle Zauner's Crying in H Mart (2021) is a memoir about losing her mother and finding her Korean identity through food. These picks share its heart.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Ages | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eat a Peach | David Chang | Adult | chef memoirs |
| The Year of Magical Thinking | Joan Didion | Adult | readers who want a grief memoir |
| Born a Crime | Trevor Noah | Adult | humour and hardship |
| Educated | Tara Westover | Adult | readers who like coming-of-age stories |
| Maybe You Should Talk to Someone | Lori Gottlieb | Adult | therapy stories |
| My Life in France | Julia Child | Adult | food memoir |
| Hunger | Roxane Gay | Adult | readers who want a direct memoir |
| Wild | Cheryl Strayed | Adult | readers who like journey memoirs |
| Tuesdays with Morrie | Mitch Albom | Adult | readers who want nonfiction |
| The Glass Castle | Jeannette Walls | Adult | readers who like survival stories |
| Brain on Fire | Susannah Cahalan | Adult | medical mystery |
| Being Mortal | Atul Gawande | Adult | readers who want practical wisdom |
| Between Two Kingdoms | Suleika Jaouad | Adult | healing journeys |
| Bossypants | Tina Fey | Adult | readers who want laughs |
| Just Kids | Patti Smith | Adult | art and friendship |
1. Eat a Peach by David Chang
The chef behind Momofuku describes his rise and his struggles with depression. Frank and funny.
Best for: chef memoirs.
2. The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
Didion writes about the year after her husband's sudden death. Spare, precise and honest.
Best for: readers who want a grief memoir.
3. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
Noah describes growing up mixed-race in apartheid South Africa. Funny and powerful.
Best for: humour and hardship.
4. Educated by Tara Westover
Westover grows up in a survivalist family and goes to college. Gripping and honest.
Best for: readers who like coming-of-age stories.
5. Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
A therapist shares stories of patients and her own therapy. Warm and funny.
Best for: therapy stories.
6. My Life in France by Julia Child
Julia Child recalls discovering French cooking. Warm and enthusiastic.
Best for: food memoir.
7. Hunger by Roxane Gay
Gay writes about her body, trauma and the world's judgment of her size. Honest and painful.
Best for: readers who want a direct memoir.
8. Wild by Cheryl Strayed
After her mother's death, Strayed hikes the Pacific Crest Trail alone. Honest and inspiring.
Best for: readers who like journey memoirs.
9. Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
A journalist visits his former professor, who is dying of ALS, every Tuesday. A short, moving memoir.
Best for: readers who want nonfiction.
10. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Walls grew up with brilliant but irresponsible parents. Vivid, funny and sad.
Best for: readers who like survival stories.
11. Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan
A young journalist develops sudden psychosis and is eventually correctly diagnosed. Gripping and humane.
Best for: medical mystery.
12. Being Mortal by Atul Gawande
A surgeon examines how medicine treats aging and dying, and what matters at the end of life. Clear and humane.
Best for: readers who want practical wisdom.
13. Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaouad
A young writer faces cancer and then takes a road trip across America. Honest and uplifting.
Best for: healing journeys.
14. Bossypants by Tina Fey
Fey writes about her career in comedy and life as a working mother. Funny, quick and clear-eyed.
Best for: readers who want laughs.
15. Just Kids by Patti Smith
Patti Smith writes about her friendship with Robert Mapplethorpe. Lyrical and moving.
Best for: art and friendship.
How We Chose These Books
Every pick is a real, widely available book that shares something specific with H Mart: its tone, its themes, its pace or the kind of characters it puts at the center. We mixed well-known favorites with a few less obvious titles, and we noted who each book suits best so you can match it to the reader. Where a book belongs to a series, we list the first volume so you can start at the beginning.
If you are not sure where to begin, start with the first three picks in the table: they are the closest match to H Mart. The rest of the list moves further out, so it works well once you know which part of the original you liked most.
How to Choose
For food, read Eat a Peach. For grief, try The Year of Magical Thinking. For identity, pick Born a Crime.
Related: The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion: Summary and Key Takeaways · Wild by Cheryl Strayed: Summary and Key Takeaways
Frequently Asked Questions
Who wrote Crying in H Mart?
Michelle Zauner.
Is she a musician?
Yes, she performs as Japanese Breakfast.
Is it sad?
Yes, it deals with grief.
Which book here is best for art and friendship?
Try Just Kids by Patti Smith, which suits readers looking for art and friendship.
Which book here is best for readers who want laughs?
Try Bossypants by Tina Fey, which suits readers looking for readers who want laughs.
Which book here is best for healing journeys?
Try Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaouad, which suits readers looking for healing journeys.
Which book here is best for readers who want practical wisdom?
Try Being Mortal by Atul Gawande, which suits readers looking for readers who want practical wisdom.
Which book here is best for medical mystery?
Try Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan, which suits readers looking for medical mystery.
Which book here is best for readers who like survival stories?
Try The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, which suits readers looking for readers who like survival stories.