Days of Distraction

A Novel

By: Alexandra Chang

Narrated by: Greta Jung

Length: 10 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

"Startlingly original and deeply moving.... Chang here establishes herself as one of the most important of the new generation of American writers." (George Saunders)

A Most Anticipated Book of the Year from Buzzfeed, Electric Literature, and The Millions

A wry, tender portrait of a young woman - finally free to decide her own path, but unsure if she knows herself well enough to choose wisely - from a captivating new literary voice

The plan is to leave. As for how, when, to where, and even why - she doesn’t know yet. So begins a journey for the 24-year-old narrator of Days of Distraction. As a staff writer at a prestigious tech publication, she reports on the achievements of smug Silicon Valley billionaires and start-up bros while her own request for a raise gets bumped from manager to manager. And when her longtime boyfriend, J, decides to move to a quiet upstate New York town for grad school, she sees an excuse to cut and run.

Moving is supposed to be a grand gesture of her commitment to J and a way to reshape her sense of self. But in the process, she finds herself facing misgivings about her role in an interracial relationship. Captivated by the stories of her ancestors and other Asian Americans in history, she must confront a question at the core of her identity: What does it mean to exist in a society that does not notice or understand you?

Equal parts tender and humorous, and told in spare but powerful prose, Days of Distraction is an offbeat coming-of-adulthood tale, a touching family story, and a razor-sharp appraisal of our times.

©2020 Alexandra Chang (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers

Ambivalent

Struggled to get through this book. Felt the author jumpedfrom topic to topic without segues. Didn't like the protagonist and how she interacted with her boyfriend or her father.

The history is interesting.

Some of the history is interesting but the main character seemed lazy and complaining most of the time which was tiresome to me.

Loved this book

I liked the way the author intertwines Chinese American stories of the past and present with her own family life. I also loved how much her boyfriend, who is not Chinese but is revered by her family, and her own nuclear family meant to her despite at times having family members who do not communicate with each other.

Not a fan of the narrator

“Days Of Distraction” by Alexandra Chang has garnered much publicity and recommendations, and deservingly so. It’s billed as a “coming-of-adulthood” story which is indeed part of it. It’s a story of a woman in her early twenties following her beloved from San Francisco to Ithaca NY. But she’s not blindly following him, she questions her relationship with him and how following him could affect her career. She’s not happy in her current job and looks forward to making a change. Yet is this right for her?’

What I enjoyed was her quiet contemplations. She includes historical tidbits, generally about race and interactional relationships. I listened to the Audible production, read by Greta Jung. I was not a fan of Jung’s performance. To me, she was wooden and far from dramatic. I wish I would have read the story because I’m a visual learner, and there is so much information and insights piled in this novel that I wanted to see the words written. I needed to rewind the narrative many times.

This is an engaging story of a young woman growing into adulthood, and not blindly. Yes, she’s confused; yes, she’s searching. I enjoyed her emotional and intellectual deliberations. I suggest reading this one.