Days of Distraction audiobook

I would say "possibly this book was made for me in a lab," due to how many things it has going for it that I have written at length about loving in the past, but I am trying to work on my belief that everything in the universe exists in orbit around me.So instead I'll say the following series of things:1) I go feral for books with unique formatting2) This is like reading the diary of an acquaintance you know just well enough to identify as introspective and intelligent. It's a delicious indulgence3) the ending of this is almost stunningly lovely, so lovely I hand-wrote the last pages in a notebook for no reason but to see them again4) I want more from this protagonist or these characters or this author, or for this book to not be over, or to have confidence I could read something else like this someday5) twenty-first century life is so strange and lonely, and there is so much we don't control, but there is a beauty to all of it.Bottom line: A stunner.4.5

Some books are plotty and others can meander through a life, soft and spare. This is one of the latter and it's a genre I get very picky about. There has to be some grand design to it, some purpose, some theme, some character that makes it all feel worthwhile and Chang delivers. Her protagonist--a millennial, a tech writer, a child of Chinese immigrants--doesn't just accept her circumstances, but change can feel impossible. (Her repeated requests for a raise at her job where she is not even a salaried employee but a contractor with no benefits lead her exactly nowhere.) And if she could change her life, what would she change it to? There are no clear answers to anything.In the middle of all this she begins to worry more and more about her relationship with J, your classic well-meaning white guy. J is smart and kind, he loves her and worries about her. J also regularly downplays her frustration or concern around race, and commits plenty of microaggressions of his own. Our narrator starts to wonder what she is doing in this relationship, why she has chosen to be with a white man, and what having an interracial relationship really means, sending her into a deep dive of research and reading. It is also a time capsule of the early 2010's, when social media was still maturing but integrated into daily life, and when media started growing specifically around a social strategy. (Which would by the end of the decade have destroyed most of them.) The way the internet and media and tech change so quickly, there's something staggering in looking back just a few years and seeing just how different things have become already. Chang nails this part of the book so much that it should be up there with books like STARTUP as catching this moment in capitalism. I found it so fascinating that I was really bummed when the narrator left.There were so many things in this book I related to, especially about relationships. The tempo may be slow, especially in the second half, but it does pay off.

Update… $1.99 Kindle special. I think it’s worth it - great price! Great novel Audiobook…..read by Greta Jung ….10 hours and 36 minutes This book made me hungry! Given we have no usable kitchen in the house —[not starving]…protein drinks, veggie sandwiches, tea and cookies are a fine temporary diet, but Asian-American Alexandra Chang mentioned yummy noodles & veggies often enough, in San Francisco….I started getting a craving 🥢🍜 for “Khan Toke Thai House”, on 25th and Geary in S. F. (best kept secret…delicious S.F. neighbor Thai restaurant)….where running into Robin Williams when he was alive was not uncommon.Getting real…. If I were writing longer - complete reviews- I’d not only have a lot to say about this books - it’s power and importance — but would be wanting share the voracious spot-on-killer-meticulously-spectacular- dialogue between Alexandra and Dad. …..or phenomenal dialogue between Alexandra and boyfriend J.An incredibly engaging and entertaining audio-listen. One of the best ‘REFLECTS-CURRENT-TRUTH’….that I’ve read by ANY Asian-American….. ‘ever’. This is a fantastic book! Smart, savvy, ingenious…..> Themes include leaving home, Bay Area identity, working in the tech world, relationship with caucasian boyfriend, J, choices to make about work — moving to New York associated with choices with boyfriend, quandaries about racism, white privilege, sexism, Asian-American cultural history, ongoing ‘awesome’ conversations with DAD…..and just damn great storytelling…..real - funny - offbeat- gut powerful complexities of modern life. LOVE LOVE LOVED it!!!!!

“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.

This reads like such a debut novel workshopped out of an MFA program where the POC author is forced to reckon with her Asian-American identity and biracial relationship by throwing everything she has out onto the page in a lightly fictionalized autobiography. But as an Asian-American, bi-racially married dude working in tech this is just such a me book. The San Francisco tech environment with its open plan office spaces, standing desks and online watercooler chat fretting about the next round of imminent layoffs feels intimately familiar. The micro-aggressions experienced when travelling, the sixth sense of knowing just how much you might stand out in certain environments and how you contend with that in opposition to the blithe indifference whiteness can simply take for granted. And just the sheer fun of assembled "Snippets of Asian America" and how history has regarded the "yellow peril" over the years and how some have raised their defiant voices in demanding to be wholly seen. So yeah, I dug this book. Your mileage may vary.

Days of Distraction is Alexandra Chang’s debut novel that explores the life of a Chinese-American millennial living and working in San Francisco as a Tech Writer. She is at a point in her life where she needs to make decision, do she continue working as a Tech Writer even though she is underappreciated, not well paid, the office politics and racial tension is a lot to handle. Or, does she jump at the chance to make a fresh start with her boyfriend who is a PHD student looking to start a new programme. She goes between the two choices, weighing the pros and cons, getting feedback from her family, especially her mother and father. In Days of Distraction Chang does an impeccable job of showing what life is like for a Chinese American, the racial tension, the cultural references that are all wrong, how people generally treat Chinese. At one point in the book the protagonist asked the question to herself Have I made myself this accommodating? A harmless vessel for their confusion and rage? They must see me as soft and small and unthreatening, because I have never suggested otherwise. . We see how the character tries to stand up for herself, to carve out a path but there is always some opposition. I LOVED the writing in this book. The characters are fully formed and they STICK with you. Chang writes from a place of knowledge with soo much insight. I strongly recommend this read! What I learned reading this book Also, it isn’t “shoe in,” it’s “shoo-in” as in to shoo somebody in a certain direction.

This is really a wonderful book. I would say it is a “quiet” book, but that’s true only on the surface. Nothing big happens: there are no deaths, no global disasters, no terminal diseases. But under the surface of the relatively mundane plot, we get to experience the main character’s richly complex internal and interpersonal relationships, as well as the external forces operating on both.In this context, Ms. Chang’s strength is using straightforward prose to convey this turmoil. She doesn’t try to shout down injustice or prejudice or ignorance. Instead, she holds examples up for the reader to view, which is far more engrossing.One thing in particular I really appreciated about this story is the narrator’s relationship with “J.” It is a warm, loving relationship, treated tenderly, without sentimentality. It is a relationship I wanted to spend hundreds of pages in. The relationship is not conflict-free–the couple’s closeness raises issues for the narrator to contend with–but it was refreshing to spend time with characters who want to work things out.Structurally, the book reminded me of Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli. There is also an extended section with the narrator’s father, and Ms. Chang’s adeptness at conveying his personality through dialogue reminded me of The Dog of the South by Charles Portis.Other reviewers will give more details abut the plot, and maybe even better literary references. I would just summarize by saying this novel is very readable–even though the themes are anything but lightweight–and would recommend it to anyone I know.

What a funny, energetic, and insightful read. This is the relationship novel for our alienated age. Chang shows us a young Chinese American woman who, as she leaves behind her tech-reporter job in San Francisco for unknowns in upstate New York, struggles to define herself as an individual to her white boyfriend, to her co-workers, to her family, to herself, and must decide what is worth loving at a time when nothing feels real. I’d recommend this to anyone who wants to read a book that feels very now.People who liked Offill’s Dept. of Speculation and Khong’s Goodbye, Vitamin will want to read this, as it also has that same literary-yet-accessible vibe. Also, because of the narrator’s darkly funny wit, I often thought of Renata Adler’s Speedboat. For example, one of many great lines: “I’ve seen Mark Zuckerberg a few times in person, but never close enough to examine the pores in his skin or the pupils of his eyes, so I’m not certain he has either.”Some random stuff…The fragmented structure is smooth and propulsive. The dialogue has such rhythm to it. And the politics of the book are complicated, never reductive.

Searching, wise, honest, beautiful. A novel that lingers, with characters that feel so whole.

I give Days of Distraction by Alexandra Chang my highest recommendation. This book explores topics of race, work, love, and family as experienced by young people today. It is funny and thoughtful and thought provoking. It would make a great book club selection as it is a perfect conversational base for so many important topics of our time. It’s a compelling read, I devoured it in one big gulp.

The digital arc of this book was kindly provided by the publisher via Edelweiss+ website in exchange for an honest review.3,75 starsI quite liked this book, especially the first part of it that is set in San-Francisco. The writing was good, I even highlighted some nice quotes and sayings. But after some time, the main character started to grate on my nerves a lot, I understood her concerns and struggles or at least tried to, but she was being such a negative Nancy and at some point, I didn't want to read about her anymore. However, I understand that I'm not this books's primary reading audience so if you think you're - then you might enjoy this novel a lot more.

Days of Distraction is a timely coming-of-adulthood tale that follows the life of a twenty-something Chinese-American woman working in the tech industry in San Francisco. The book explores Jing Jing’s journey with identity and belonging, as she seeks to learn more about her heritage, society and Asian immigrants of the past.Chang has a straightforward prose that gives the book a slow pace but with a refreshing tone. It doesn’t point fingers, but pushes the reader to empathise and contemplate as the story unfolds. She does a wonderful job at highlighting the chauvinism, office politics, and racism Jing Jing faces as one of the only Asian-American employees at her company. Sadly, there’s engrossing action missing to make the plot memorable, so the best way I could describe this debut is quiet but profound.I really enjoyed reading the thoughts of a millennial mind as she navigates life. I’m a huge fan of coming-of-adulthood tales, and although this book does move quite slowly, it was an insightful read. The narrator’s observations and reflections contain plenty I can personally relate to, from insecurities to xenophobia to microaggressions to people just not getting it. But I enjoyed reading this from the perspective of a different race, that’s what makes this book stand out to me. The author includes references from history through Jing Jing’s family, quotes, and articles to paint a deep and grounding portrait of immigration, interracial relationships, and Asian culture.I think Days of Distraction would make a great impact on the screen, but as a book the flow just wasn’t engaging enough. Nevertheless, I loved the insight into the Asian-American experience, the exploration of identity and the author’s natural wit. A great debut and a great read for May.

I’ve never read a book with such good dialogues. Everything about this book felt so real. Some of the interactions between the main character and her boyfriend reminded me so vividly of my own relationship, in a way that I’ve never seen as beautifully and accurately translated into words before. And that’s nothing but a testament to Alexandra Chang’s immense talent.

I liked this so much!! I found the writing style so immersive, it was so loose yet packed w meaning in a way that made me ponder the selection of each paragraph. idk if it would work for everyone but I really enjoy sort of stream of consciousness writing and narrators who are very internal. I don’t know if this book caused me to have a little emotional meltdown of my own or if I’m just on my period and it was a coincidence.. but I think we can partially blame this book.it’s interesting I guess bc it’s not like I can relate to the main character. one of the main issues in this book was the Asian narrator contemplating her interracial relationship w her white boyfriend. but I loved how the author played that struggle out by mixing paragraphs of the narrator’s experiences w excerpts from articles and biographies she was reading. I thought it helped me feel very close to how the narrator was processing her thoughts and emotions. and I mean I will always find a way to relate to millennial women set adrift in one way or another. loved the flow of this story, loved the style of writing, loved the narrator. I desperately want to know what happens after this book ends but I understand I cannot always get what I want especially when I am asking for certainty from art.