Xiaolu Guo's writing is direct and keen, offering up a vivid portraiture of a young Chinese woman, Fenfang, trying to make her way through life in Beijing in the early 2000s. Fenfang rubberbands back and forth; she goes from wanting to waning, from working in a movie theatre to being an extra in a film, from apartment to apartment as she figures out what to do next.

Although each fragment/chapter may seem sort of random at times, I think each one gives such a startlingly realistic vignette of key moments for Fenfang, some big and dramatic and others quiet and reflective. Sure, there are repetitive scenes, but each one is different in the sense that they illustrate tiny moments of growth and change throughout her life, little steps forwards in a new direction. One of my favorites is the fragment of Fenfang preparing for her new job in an office, setting alarm clocks and worrying about her outfit and trying to figure out the inane office dynamic only to quit the same day and move to the next part of life. It's SUCH an in-your-twenties-with-no-"Big Life Plan" moment and it felt so relatable!

"Twenty Fragments of a Ravenous Youth" is a unique gem of a book that will certainly resonate with the readers who take the time to get to know Fenfang and join her on her journey through a changing China and deeper into adulthood. ( )

This is a book I don't even know how I came across. There it was, in my library check-out pile, so I read it. So, I don't really have a context for it at all.

That being said, I'm glad I read it. It was intriguing and constructed well enough that I read it in two or three days; it's also not long at all. But the author covers a lot of material in those 164 (small) pages.

I rarely agree with the "Praise for" statements on the back of a cover. But in this case, I agree with two of them. The Irish Times used the phrase "instinctive, humane witness" to describe the author. I'd use it to describe the main character, Fenfang, whose eyes and voice we witness parts of China (primarily Beijing) in some of the first years of the twenty-first century. (I'm not sure how closely Fenfang is based on the author's own experience, but it appears, and it feels, like they could be related.)

The Sunday Times (which would be...where?) says it's a "sharp, unpretentious, sophisticated piece." And if they mean "sharp" like "raw" or like "keenly insightful" then I also agree. The "unpretentious, sophisticated" part it right on.

I think it's important to note that this book was translated from Chinese, and then the author revised it in English. I think that shows through a little, not that I fault the work for that fact. Some parts read more smoothly is all. And it's also relevant to note that Xiaoulu Guo intentionally wrote in a raw, unsophisticated, slang-driven Chinese, and had to have Fenfang's voice translated over to English, where sometimes no correlations existed.

What I like best about this book is that it is a work of observation, seemingly lightly shaped by the author. Fenfang is, in all likelihood, severely depressed, clinically anxious, and possibly traumatized. But the book isn't about that. It's the observations of a raw, unvarnished human who is driven by a quest, without even recognizing what path she's on. Despite that, the author shapes the story enough that it itself is not a depressing read, and that we have hope for Fenfang as she leaves Beijing and continues the quest at the end of the book. ( )

i loved it. ( )

The reason I bought the book is for the cover and because it was so short too, I wanted to read something a bit different then what I usually chose, and it was very interesting, while I was reading I was so shocked by a lot of things in the book, the traditions, Chinese way of thinking, some stuff that made all the difference, but there is one thing I didn't like at all, how she ((the writer)) wrote about God, with no respect what so ever, it was very bad indeed, she kept calling him : "Heavenly B*****d in the sky"! I really hated that so much! come on! talk about anyone but not God! ( )

The reason I bought the book is for the cover and because it was so short too, I wanted to read something a bit different then what I usually chose, and it was very interesting, while I was reading I was so shocked by a lot of things in the book, the traditions, Chinese way of thinking, some stuff that made all the difference, but there is one thing I didn't like at all, how she ((the writer)) wrote about God, with no respect what so ever, it was very bad indeed, she kept calling him : "Heavenly B*****d in the sky"! I really hated that so much! come on! talk about anyone but not God! ( )