A review by talknerdybookblog
Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou

dark emotional funny reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Representation: Taiwanese-American main character, Korean-American supporting character, lesbian Vietnamese-American supporting character, Chinese side character, lesbian Black side character, Taiwanese-American side character

Mature Themes:

• Sex
• Cursing
• Drug abuse


Possible Triggers: Yes

• Racism
• Gaslighting
• Emotional abuse
• Homophobia
• Xenophobia
• Misogyny
• Cultural appropriation
• Racial slurs
• Discussion of a side character's attempted suicide
• Cultural appropriation
• Yellowface
• Fetishization of East Asian women becomes a main plot point
• Brief allusion to an adult/minor relationship between a supporting character and his wife (he met his wife in China when he was 27, and earlier, it was mentioned that there's a 15-year age gap between them)


Ending:
The ending is very OTT because the book is satire, but I think it reflects what happens in real life: those who perpetuate oppression through a "free speech" narrative are rewarded, whereas those who call out oppression - white supremacy - are punished by institutions (and the people who want to uphold it). <b>Disorientation</b> ends with Ingrid having dropped out of her Ph.D. and working a minimum wage job at a hot dog fast food joint. But the author emphasizes that while society might consider this "failure," Ingrid is all the better for it. This is a brief pause as she considers what she wants to do now that she's left academia. She finally has time to rest and heal from the trauma of academia, and she's rebuilding her relationship with her parent and learning their native language. Essentially, Ingrid is on the road to reclaiming herself and her identity outside of the white space of academia.