Boring Asian Female
An Addictive Debut about Obsession, Identity and the Dark Side of Success in a World That Demands You Stand Out
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- $179.00
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- $179.00
Descripción editorial
'Xu is a writer to watch' Isabel Banta, author of Honey
'Smart, engaging, and thought-provoking' Jean Kwok, New York Times bestselling author of The Leftover Woman
As Seen on Woman's Hour
A Love Reading DEBUT OF THE MONTH and STAR PICK
Elizabeth Zhang knows her place in the world. She knows she's in the tenth percentile for likability, the seventieth percentile for attractiveness, and the ninety-ninth percentile for academics.
With a hard-working ethic instilled in her by immigrant parents, armed with impeccable grades, Elizabeth thinks she is set for Harvard Law School. Until she is rejected for being too ordinary, which she translates to mean she's just another boring Asian female. But when her classmate Laura Kim gets in, everything falls apart. Why was Laura accepted? What makes her so interesting?
At first, she follows her because she's just curious. What Laura eats for lunch. Where Laura shops. The answer for Elizabeth's failure must lie somewhere in Laura's life. But still, Elizabeth just can't see it. The only thing she sees is that Laura has taken her spot at Harvard.
A spot she knows she deserves. A spot that she'll simply have to take back.
Layered, subversive, and satirical, this novel brings to light how, in the face of societal expectations and self-inflicted pressures, a person can unlock the darkest parts of themselves and show how far they're willing to go to achieve their vision of success.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Ambition loosens a second-generation Chinese American's grip on reality in Xu's gleefully unhinged debut. High school outcast Elizabeth Zhang longs to escape South Dakota, move somewhere that matters, and lead a life that proves she's better than everyone she grew up with. After graduating high school as valedictorian, Elizabeth matriculates at Columbia University (just like the characters in her peers' favorite TV show) and spends the next three-and-a-half years becoming the ideal Harvard Law School candidate. She aces her LSAT, maintains a 3.94 GPA, and submits glowing recommendation letters, only for Harvard to reject her but accept her Korean American classmate Laura Kim. Distraught, outraged, and in complete denial, Elizabeth stalks, catfishes, and impersonates Laura to figure out why she won what Elizabeth sees as her spot—and how to steal it back. Xu's twisted tale nimbly toes the line between noir and satire, with Elizabeth's neurotic narration growing increasingly claustrophobic as her desperation mounts and her delusions multiply. This darkly funny descent into madness is certain to make a splash.
