IMPORTANT: We will be meeting virtually via Zoom @ 11AM EST, join here: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/826219639

This month (APRIL 2020) we'll be discussing DAYS OF DISTRACTION by Alexandra Chang. We'll talk about the novel's structure, our favorite passages, and what the author is trying to accomplish, among other things! Enjoy complimentary baklava from Aleppo Sweets and meet new book friends!

ALL ARE WELCOME TO JOIN THE DISCUSSION. FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

* OUR FICTION BOOKCLUB MEETS THE LAST SUNDAY OF EVERY MONTH *

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ABOUT DAYS OF DISTRACTION:

AT A GLANCE:

“A coming-of-age tale for the 21st century… The narrator's meditations on themes like racism, capitalism, the role of technology in our lives, and complicated family relationships are simultaneously uniquely insightful and accessible to anyone who has grappled with these issues themselves. Beautifully crafted and deeply thoughtful.” - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“A startlingly original and deeply moving debut—kaleidoscopic, funny, heart-rending, beautifully observed, and formally daring. It struck me as a new variety of novel.... Chang here establishes herself as one of the most important of the new generation of American writers.” - George Saunders

SYNOPSIS:

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 twenty-four-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.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Alexandra Chang is from Northern California. She graduated from UC Berkeley and received her MFA from Syracuse University. Her fiction has appeared in Zoetrope: All-Story, Glimmer Train, LARB Quarterly Journal, Catapult, and elsewhere. She has previously worked as a technology reporter for WIRED and Macworld, and now lives in upstate New York.

SEE YOU THERE! Questions? Email: info@twentystoriesla.com