I’m Laughing Because I’m Crying: A Memoir

Standup comedian Mayer (host of the podcasts Feeling Asian and Hairy Butthole) debuts with a book that is both a memoir and a critical examination of the legacies of the Korean War, Japanese and American colonialism, rigid patriarchal structures, racism, and capitalism. Arguing that all these themes can be addressed with thorough and radical honesty, Mayer pulls no punches about her kaleidoscopic and wide-ranging lived experiences as a Korean American. Half of her memoir focuses on the stark complexities of life with her family and friends in Korea and Saipan in the ’80s and ’90s; the other half shows how her life materially changed in the U.S. in the early aughts. Readers may find the book’s tone abrasive at first, but as they continue to read, they’ll see that this work illustrates how laughing and crying (and writing) can be some of the best strategies for facing even life’s bleakest moments.