About book Twenty Fragments Of A Ravenous Youth (2008)
Sometimes I get this nagging suspicion that there's a greater conspiracy at work to make women writers all over the world feel unloved and unappreciated. *cough* V.S. Naipaul *cough* There's a deliberateness in the way most fiction authored by women is either labelled 'chick lit' and dismissed right away without a second thought or made light of under various other excuses.Why else would this book have an average rating below 3.5?Let me offer you a word of advice. Don't go by the beautiful cover, it is highly misleading. Neither is Xiaolu Guo's protagonist (a thinly veiled version of herself) half as slender or as pretty as the girl on it nor is this book about a girl navigating her way through the complicated labyrinth of dating and singles and finding her 'one true love' who sees her 'inner beauty'. Twenty Fragments of a Ravenous Youth brings into focus the position of women in a country rapidly elevating itself to a position of profound importance in the global arena but curiously enough, lacking conspicuously in the human rights department.It explores themes of isolation, urban boredom, the sheer tragedy of everyday life, personal freedom and the deep disconnect between an increasingly authoritative Communist regime and disillusioned citizens, in a quintessentially nonchalant manner.Xiaolu Guo's heroine Fenfang speaks in a slangy Chinese, swears often and has extremely messy living habits. She is strangely apathetic to the happenings in her own life and has the rare ability of analyzing most aspects of it with a casualness that is as scary as it is unique.After having quit the disturbingly monotonous life in the countryside where her parents are but humble farmers with little variety in their daily routines, a starry-eyed Fenfang comes to Beijing with dreams of becoming a film actress or a script-writer. But quickly she discovers, the city is not all that it is hyped up to be. Directors aren't interested in casting her as the lead and producers won't even read stories 'written by a woman' let alone accepting them as scripts for tv shows. And the old-fashioned folks of her neighborhood who take pride in sporting red Communist armbands to boot, are disapproving of the smartly dressed, independent, young female who has the audacity to bring a man home at night. Refusing to lose heart, Fenfang starts working as extras on film and tv drama sets and slowly but surely begins carving out a niche for herself. She makes peace with stalkers, violent, physically absent, insensitive boyfriends, the cockroaches in her apartment and even the police who arrest her just to deliver a lecture on ideal behavior expected of an 'unmarried woman' and the unreasonableness of a woman being too 'individualistic'. But even in the midst of these bleakest of surroundings, she finds an answer to the eternally baffling question of what true freedom really means. This book has tried to lay Beijing bare - reveal the ugly facet of a city which still insists on practising blatant sexism and vigilantly guarding obsolete ideals in the 21st century, while maintaining the facade of rapid infrastructural development. And it has helped me come to the realization that it is indeed possible to merge relevant sociopolitical issues seamlessly with an otherwise ordinary narrative of an ordinary girl.Neither has Xiaolu Guo tried to present this book as highbrow literature nor has she made the effort to write long, verbose sentences replete with symbolism or imagery. Instead she has directed her energies at highlighting the predicament of the young, modern woman all over the world and especially in a country like China, where the so-called 'weaker sex' is still not in the driver's seat. And for me, this is an achievement she deserves praise for. A 3.5 stars rounded off to a willing, impressed 4 stars. I'll definitely read her other works.
I picked this book up because (1) I want to read more novels about China (2) the cover is gorgeous. It is, in fact, one of the prettiest covers I've ever seen.If you're looking for a traditional novel, one with a linear plot and a conclusive ending, you're going to be disappointed. This is literaly a collection of 20 fragments in the life of Fenfang as a teenager/in her early 20s. What happens afterwards? We'll never know. At first I was frustrated by the lack of an ending, but then I realized that it was very fitting. This is just a glimpse into Fenfang's life. She's stepping into her future, and what it will bring neither her nor anyone else can know.Fenfang begins terribly conscious of her peasant roots. Like thousands of young people before her, she decides to escape the monotony of village life and make it in the big city. She has little education (only up to middle school), not much money, no appreciable skills and no connections, but with the arrogance and hope of youth and the fear of a future no different than the past, she picks up and goes. However, even though she has been in Beijing for five years when the book begins, she still feels like she can never truly get rid of the scent of the soil and feels that her obvious backwater heritage marks her as inferior. The inescapable shame of the inferiority of backwater roots and the derision for others who have the same that Fenfang experiences were also blatantly apparent in Bosworth's London journal (Bosworth was a 18th century Scotsman who wanted to make it big in London). It seems like a pretty universal experience that city girls like me never even have to think about.Fenfang spends most of her time in the book as an extra in films and TV, a metaphor for her Beijing existence. She is "Woman on Bridge," or "Woman Riding a Bike." Nameless, unimportant, overlooked, interchangeable with millions of other young women. Fenfang has two significant romantic relationships. The bitter Xiaolin, who later becomes abusive, and the distant Ben, her American boyfriend who never quite understands China or Fenfang, possibly because he never really tried. Fenfang appears to stay in these relationships not because they're good for her (they're not) or because she loves the guys (although I think she did love Xiaolin, in the beginning). She does it because she's lonely. In a city of millions, most of the time she feels alone. I liked the book a lot. It's a quick read, both because it's short and because it draws you in. I thought it was a very interesting look into modern China, especially for the life of the young and the poor. The book jumps around a bit, but I never found it hard to follow.
Do You like book Twenty Fragments Of A Ravenous Youth (2008)?
The twenty fragments which make up this book are twenty glimpses into the life of Fenfang, a young Chinese woman from the provinces who decides to leave her parental home and move to Beijing in the hope of finding fame and fortune. Unlucky in love and struggling financially, her occasional and erratic work usually involves being an insignificant extra in the background of a film. However, encouraged by a good friend, she eventually turns her hand to script-writing. Success is still slow to appear, but she also begins to develop the potential for self-worth and a sense of purpose. I love reading books about other countries and cultures, whether near or far, and a good book for me is a passport to travel the world in my mind. This book is perfect for mind-travel. The noise, dirt, smells and tastes of Beijing are vividly and honestly described and brought to life by the author and her excellent translator, Rebecca Morris. Fenfang is a very real character, and her thoughts and emotions were mine as I was reading the book. It also drew me to consider the questions which Fenfang might have asked herself. Was she doing the right thing when she left her home village? Should she have left her first boyfriend? Could she have gone to America with Ben? And the list goes on...I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys interesting, challenging stories set in other countries. It would also be a thought-provoking read for anyone on the verge of leaving home to start a life for themselves, or (perhaps not!) parents of children considering flying the nest.
—Helen
"My youth began when I was twenty-one. At least, that's when I decided it began. That was when I started to think that all those shiny things in life - some of them might possibly be for me.If you think twenty one sounds a bit late for youth to start, just think about the average Chinese peasant, who leaps straight from childhood to middle age with nothing in between. If I was going to miss out on anything, it was middle age. Be young or die. That was my plan."Seventeen-year old Fenfang Wang decides to leave her village where nobody talks and where life begins and ends like the sweet potatoes underground. If the man coughs twice today and spit once, he will do it again the next day and the next day and the next day. She wants to experience the booming city of Beijing, escape the peasant monotony of poverty and manual labor with no intellectual development ever happening. She travels 1 800 miles to accomplish this dream where she soon finds different jobs, ending up working in the film industry as an extra, lives in different places and eventually learns that loneliness becomes a destination in a cruel world out there when a young girl wishes to be independent and not be dominated by a boyfriend and his family. It is a coming of age novella of a young Chinese girl who experience the first harshness of the adult world she does not really understand yet, but is determined to get to know. She becomes part of a fast changing China where Comrades still sleep on their jobs they're getting paid for, and still rampantly spy on neighbors, family and friends, while the private sector is rapidly changing China into a boom fest. Even Ginger Hill village, her home turf becomes The Ginger Hill Township with new developments changing the rural landscape forever in her absence.My comments: It is certainly not the best Chinese author I have read so far, but still a delightful read. The innocence in her observations are interesting and appreciated. Nothing escapes her and her mind is driving her emotions and fears like the crazy taxi driver who rushes her through dark city streets for late night meetings with obnoxious movie moguls. The cities never sleep. She is ambitious, intelligent, smart. Beijing, a dynamic city, is introduced to the reader where Communism is present, but not the overwhelming focus. The energy of the different cities she lives in becomes part of the reader's heartbeat - the noise, the pollution, the smells, the food, the people, the seasons, everything. Nothing is really heart-stoppingly exciting though and I was confused with the time lapse between some of the fragments. However, it is an eye-catching coming-of-age novella. I just wonder how she got into contact with her English editors and translators. It is not a story. The title says it all. The fragments of her life, almost written in a diary style, follow each other chronologically and bind the experience together. It ends almost on a cliffhanger and had me confused. But it is still an eye-opening read. I enjoyed it.It was more than that to me. Thanks to Sue, it was a very special treat indeed!
—Margitte
This is a contemporary novel that begins at the turn of the new millennium as Fenfang (who may be the author's alter ego of sorts) decides she can no longer tolerate the quiet, the boredom, the fields, even her parents and has to leave the countryside for Beijing and her dreams of becoming a scriptwriter or actress. Along with her we see the reality of Beijing under Communism, the crowds, the dirt, the pollution, the poverty, and the very limited expectations for all women.She tries different strategies and repeatedly loses. She has an American boyfriend and a Chinese boyfriend stalker. She is reported to the police for her improper ways and is lectured as to the correct ways for a young woman to live. None of these things seem to have a lasting impact. Her emotions are curious; at times she is full of sorrow, at times she is amazingly passive---perhaps beaten down by the world around her. Happiness is rare. Xiaolu Guo allows Fenfang to provide a verbal picture of Beijing near the end of the book. "This was Beijing. A city that never showed its gentle side. You'd die if you didn't fight with it, and there was no end to the fight. Beijing was a city for Sisyphus ---you could push and push and push, but ultimately that stone was bound to roll back on you." (p 157)Not a welcoming place to a person of any age, much less a young person with dreams.Rating 3.5*Recommended for it's view of a different China, a modern state we don't always see. Also a young person's view as Fenfang was only 17 as the stories begin.
—Sue
