Act Normal

A bold, fragmented memoir that captures a life in all its contradictions.

Confronting universal themes of love, loss, identity and the search for connection.

Pete Kalu's polemical memoir uses a kaleidoscopic, non-linear structure to offer a richly textured account of the author’s biographical, intellectual, and emotional experiences. Though not chronological, the narrative covers key life stages: childhood, young adulthood, adulthood, relationships, parenthood, and agehood. Its emotional range includes comedy, pathos, elation, dysphoria, dissociation, infatuation, pessimism, stoicism, and despair. The shifting perspectives and fragmented style create a multifaceted portrait of a complex individual. Through this dynamic form, the memoir reveals the author’s sensibilities, struggles, and inner contradictions, delivering a vivid, honest, and comprehensive sense of a life both lived and examined.