Michelle Zauner

Crying in H Mart: A Memoir

Crying in H Mart is Michelle Zauner's debut memoir, originally published by Alfred A. Knopf in April 2021 and later reissued by Vintage, in which the singer-guitarist of Japanese Breakfast chronicles the death of her mother, Chongmi, from pancreatic cancer and the cultural inheritance, grief, and hard-won self-knowledge that followed. Rooted in a celebrated 2018 New Yorker essay of the same name, the book became a major bestseller and received widespread critical acclaim. This review draws on published sources and the book's record; it does not reflect hands-on reading or use.

Reviewed Aug 22, 2026