Hollow City and Tripmaster Monkey

Rebecca Solnit's Hollow City is a coffee table book which describes the loss of San Francisco culture and identity to a young, corporate, urban, pop America. Solnit argues that the original occupants of San Francisco are being displaced and the prices of housing are being marked up as young corporate white people begin to infringe upon cultural districts. Parts of San Francisco, Hollow City argues, were originally designated for poor artists, and with this youthful consumerist takeover, the whole bohemian aspect of San Francisco is being lost. San Francisco's multicultural and diverse image is being lost to an internet generation. Those who are to blame are an upcoming class of capitalistic opportunists, Solnit claims. Starbucks and luxury condominiums are paving over the classic image and product of San Francisco. With the rising price of housing, the artistry of the city is being lost to gentrification.

In Maxine Hong Kingston's Tripmaster Monkey, a 60s San Francisco of multicultural revelry and adventure is on display. Our protagonist, Whittman Ah Sing, searches for his identity among this multi-ethnic city. In a case of double-consciousness, Whittman Ah Sing struggles to identify with the Chinese of San Francisco while identifying with the American of his country. He explores the places which are Chinese and the places which are American, but struggles to find a part of San Francisco that is not a stereotype.